Editing Lateral line (section)

{{good article}}
{{short description|Sensory system in fish}}
[[File:Lateral line 01.JPG|thumb|upright=1.5|Oblique view of a [[goldfish]] (''Carassius auratus''), showing pored scales of the lateral line system]]
The '''lateral line''', also called the '''lateral line organ''' ('''LLO'''), is a system of [[Sensory perception|sensory]] organs found in [[fish]], used to detect movement, vibration, and pressure gradients in the surrounding water. The sensory ability is achieved via modified [[epithelial cells]], known as [[hair cells]], which respond to displacement caused by motion and [[signal transduction|transduce]] these signals into electrical impulses via [[excitatory synapses]]. Lateral lines play an important role in [[School (fish)|schooling]] behavior, predation, and orientation. 

Early in the [[evolution of fish]], some of the sensory organs of the lateral line were modified to function as the [[electroreception|electroreceptors]] called [[ampullae of Lorenzini]]. The lateral line system is ancient and basal to the vertebrate clade, as it is found in fishes that diverged over 400 million years ago.