Occurrence of a Filter-feeding Mechanism in the Polychæte Nereis diversicolor

Nature ◽  
1950 ◽  
Vol 165 (4201) ◽  
pp. 734-735 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARGARET B. HARLEY
2018 ◽  
Vol 221 (19) ◽  
pp. jeb183350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karly E. Cohen ◽  
L. Patricia Hernandez ◽  
Callie H. Crawford ◽  
Brooke E. Flammang

Physiology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 409-418 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert E. Shadwick ◽  
Jean Potvin ◽  
Jeremy A. Goldbogen

The largest animals are baleen filter feeders that exploit large aggregations of small-bodied plankton. Although this feeding mechanism has evolved multiple times in marine vertebrates, rorqual whales exhibit a distinct lunge filter feeding mode that requires extreme physiological adaptations—most of which remain poorly understood. Here, we review the biomechanics of the lunge feeding mechanism in rorqual whales that underlies their extraordinary foraging performance and gigantic body size.


Larvae of many marine invertebrates must capture and ingest particulate food in order to develop to metamorphosis. These larvae use only a few physical processes to capture particles, but implement these processes using diverse morphologies and behaviors. Detailed understanding of larval feeding mechanism permits investigators to make predictions about feeding performance, including the size spectrum of particles larvae can capture and the rates at which they can capture them. In nature, larvae are immersed in complex mixtures of edible particles of varying size, density, flavor, and nutritional quality, as well as many particles that are too large to ingest. Concentrations of all of these components vary on fine temporal and spatial scales. Mechanistic models linking larval feeding mechanism to performance can be combined with data on food availability in nature and integrated into broader bioenergetics models to yield increased understanding of the biology of larvae in complex natural habitats.


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