CARRENO, C. A.*; NISHIKAWA, K. C.; Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff; Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff: Does Xenopus laevis use suction for prey capture? Unlike most frogs, pipids are aquatic and capture prey underwater. For these aglossal frogs, the typical anuran mode of lingual prey capture is not possible. Because water is dense and viscous, suction feeding […]

RICE, Aaron N.; WESTNEAT, Mark W.; Univ. of Chicago; Field Museum of Natural History: Coordination of Feeding and Locomotor Systems in the Labridae To capture prey, fishes must coordinate complex movements of both the feeding and locomotor systems. Despite the extensive research on both systems in fishes, few studies have integrated these areas of study […]

TYTELL, E.D.; Harvard University: Three-dimensional white muscle fiber orientations in zebrafish: An automatic technique for measuring fiber angles in fishes The three-dimensional orientations of white muscle fibers in zebrafish, Brachydanio rerio, were measured using an automatic image analysis technique, based on confocal and two-photon microscopy. Previous anatomical studies have shown that white muscle fibers in […]

FLAMMANG, B.E.*; AZIZI, E.; Moss Landing Marine Laboratories; University of Massachusetts, Amherst: The radial muscle: A new chapter in shark tails The swimming kinematics and hydrodynamics of heterocercal tails in elasmobranchs have been the focus of a number of recent studies. However, the locomotor functions of the internal morphological structures of the heterocercal tail remain […]

STELLA, M.P.*; KIER, W.M.; Univ. of N. Carolina, Chapel Hill; Univ. of N. Carolina, Chapel Hill: The Morphology and Mechanics of Octopus Arms: Inspiration for Novel Robotics The eight arms of octopuses are used in locomotion, prey capture, feeding, manipulation and sensing of objects, grooming, and reproduction. Accomplishing such a diverse array of tasks requires […]

HSIEH, S.T.; Harvard University: Mechanics of terrestrial locomotion in aquatic, amphibious, and terrestrial blennies The amphibious Pacific leaping blenny, Alticus arnoldorum, exhibits a diverse terrestrial locomotor repertoire including jumping, crawling, and climbing. All of these movements involve a stereotyped movement of placing the tail beside the head, twisting the tail axially, and then pushing off […]

TAYLOR, J. R. A.*; KIER, W. M.; Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill: Hydrostatic support in a land crab As crabs evolved adaptations for life on land, they retained a molting process similar to that of aquatic crabs and become soft and vulnerable each time they shed their rigid exoskeleton. Aquatic crabs remain mobile during […]

METZGER, K.A.; Brown University: The effect of food properties on intraoral transport kinematics in lizards Numerous studies have examined the nature and magnitude of feeding movements during intraoral transport in lizards, but few have quantitatively accounted for the effects of food properties (i.e., mass, hardness, mobility) on the use of the feeding system to process […]

MARSHALL, C.D.*; DEHNHARDT, G.; Texas A&M University at Galveston; Ruhr-Universit�t Bochum: Suction Capability and Performance in Feeding Harbor Seals (Phoca vitulina) Measures of suction generation capability in harbor seals were collected as part of a comparative study on the feeding performance of pinnipeds. Although suction is thought to be an important component of the feeding […]

ROSS, CF; University of Chicago: How do primates chew harder? Mammalian mastication is a rhythmic activity used to break down foods with a variety of material properties. How do mammals chew harder foods? Do they chew faster or slower? How do they modulate bite force? Corpus bone strain data were collected from seven species of […]