Final answer:
The basilar membrane's movement triggers the bending of the hairs on the hair cells in the organ of Corti, leading to auditory signal transduction.
Step-by-step explanation:
The movement of the basilar membrane triggers the bending of the hairs of the hair cells of the spiral organ, also known as the organ of Corti. Within the cochlea of the inner ear, the hair cells rest atop of the basilar membrane like flowers stemming from soil, with their stereocilia, or hair-like projections, making contact with or embedded into the overlying tectorial membrane. When pressure waves from sound vibration move the basilar membrane, the adjacent tectorial membrane slides across the stereocilia, bending them. This bending action either opens or closes ion channels in the hair cell membrane, leading to depolarization and the initiation of nerve impulses that convey auditory information to the brain through the cochlear nerve.