Trophic guilds of suction-feeding fishes are distinguished by their characteristic hydrodynamics of swimming and feeding.

ABSTRACT: Suction-feeding in fishes is a ubiquitous form of prey capture whose outcome depends both on the movements of the predator and the prey, and on the dynamics of the surrounding fluid, which exerts forces on the two organisms. The inherent complexity of suction-feeding has challenged previous efforts to understand how the feeding strikes are modified when species evolve to feed on different prey types. Here, we use the concept of dynamic similarity, commonly applied to understanding the mechanisms of swimming, flying, walking and aquatic feeding. We characterize the hydrodynamic regimes pertaining to (i) the forward movement of the fish (ram), and (ii) the suction flows for feeding strikes of 71 species of acanthomorph fishes. A discriminant function analysis revealed that feeding strikes of

SUBMITTER: Olsson KH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8753175 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature