Jaw protrusion enhances forces exerted on prey by suction feeding fishes.

ABSTRACT: The ability to protrude the jaws during prey capture is a hallmark of teleost fishes, widely recognized as one of the most significant innovations in their diverse and mechanically complex skull. An elaborated jaw protrusion mechanism has independently evolved multiple times in bony fishes, and is a conspicuous feature in several of their most spectacular radiations, ultimately being found in about half of the approximately 30000 living species. Variation in jaw protrusion distance and speed is thought to have facilitated the remarkable trophic diversity found across fish groups, although the mechanical consequences of jaw protrusion for aquatic feeding performance remain unclear. Using a hydrodynamic approach, we show that rapid protrusion of the jaws towards the prey, coupled with the sp

SUBMITTER: Holzman R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2607355 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature