Preparing the otoliths (ear bones) of some fish species for ageing is a very tec…

Preparing the otoliths (ear bones) of some fish species for ageing is a very technical process: we extract them, block them in resin and then take a thin cross-section to view on microscope slides. Then we look at the growth bands in them (and repeat hundreds of times!). They are really interesting to look at and it’s satisfying to see ones like this that are so clear and old. This cross-section is from a sand whiting otolith and is about half a centimetre wide and about 320 microns thick, (less than half a millimetre!) How many growth bands do you see?

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