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Related Experiment Video

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A Robotic Platform to Study the Foreflipper of the California Sea Lion

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Published on: January 10, 2017

Suction-based propulsion as a basis for efficient animal swimming.

Brad J Gemmell^1,2, Sean P Colin^2,3, John H Costello^2,4

¹Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida 33620, USA.

Nature Communications

|November 4, 2015

Summary

Efficient swimming relies on suction, not pushing water backward. This study reveals that animals create low-pressure zones to pull themselves forward, challenging traditional views of aquatic locomotion.

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Area of Science:

Fluid dynamics
Biomechanics
Animal locomotion

Background:

Traditional models of animal swimming propose thrust generation by pushing water rearward.
This perspective assumes elevated fluid pressures are key to aquatic locomotion.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the fluid dynamics underlying efficient animal swimming.
To challenge the long-standing tenet of rearward water propulsion in aquatic locomotion.

Main Methods:

Utilized particle image velocimetry (PIV) to visualize fluid flow.
Applied a pressure calculation algorithm to analyze fluid dynamics.
Studied freely swimming lampreys and jellyfish.

Main Results:

Demonstrated that efficient swimmers generate dominant low-pressure regions around their bodies.
Showed that aquatic animals primarily pull themselves forward via suction.
Contrasted findings with the traditional push-based model of locomotion.

Conclusions:

Efficient swimming is driven by suction and low-pressure generation, not pushing water backward.
Results necessitate a re-evaluation of evolutionary adaptations in swimming animals.
Findings offer new insights for bio-inspired and biomimetic vehicle design.