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Assaying Predatory Feeding Behaviors in Pristionchus and Other Nematodes
Published on: September 4, 2016
Instabilities on prey dynamics in jellyfish feeding.
Themistoklis Sapsis1, Jifeng Peng, George Haller
1Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, USA. sapsis@mit.edu
Bulletin of Mathematical Biology
|October 27, 2010
Summary
We developed a model to predict plankton movement behind jellyfish, revealing how prey inertia and self-propulsion create attracting and repelling structures. Larger plankton may experience different dynamics due to motion instabilities.
Area of Science:
- Fluid dynamics
- Plankton ecology
- Biophysics
Background:
- Jellyfish create complex fluid flows that influence plankton distribution.
- Understanding plankton dynamics is crucial for marine ecosystems.
Purpose of the Study:
- To model plankton motion in a jellyfish wake.
- To identify Lagrangian coherent structures (LCS) governing prey dynamics.
- To determine conditions for motion instabilities in plankton.
Main Methods:
- Derivation of a reduced-order equation for neutrally-buoyant inertial particles.
- Analytical calculation of attracting and repelling LCS.
- Determination of critical prey size for motion instabilities.
- Application to an experimentally measured jellyfish velocity field.
Main Results:
- A modified equation accounts for prey inertia and self-propulsion.
- Attracting and repelling LCS were calculated, characterizing plankton motion.
- Critical prey size identified, beyond which dynamics deviate from the model.
- Instability regions were mapped for zero self-propulsion cases.
Conclusions:
- The derived model accurately predicts plankton motion dynamics in jellyfish wakes.
- Prey inertia and self-propulsion significantly shape LCS and plankton encounter rates.
- Plankton size is a critical factor influencing motion stability and predictability.
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