The hydrodynamics of jet propulsion swimming in hatchling and juvenile European common cuttlefish, Sepia officinalis.

ABSTRACT: Cuttlefish swim using jet propulsion, taking a small volume of fluid into the mantle cavity before it is expelled through the siphon to generate thrust. Jet propulsion swimming has been shown to be more metabolically expensive than undulatory swimming, which has been suggested to be due to the lower efficiency of jet propulsion. The whole-cycle propulsive efficiency of cephalopod molluscs ranges from 38 to 76%, indicating that in some instances jet propulsion can be relatively efficient. Here, we determined the hydrodynamics of hatchling and juvenile cuttlefish during jet propulsion swimming to understand the characteristics of their jets, and whether their whole-cycle propulsive efficiency changes during development. Cuttlefish were found to utilise two jet types: isolated jet vortices (t

SUBMITTER: Gladman NW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10560557 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature