Prey capture kinematics of wild and hatchery juvenile common snook Centropomus undecimalis

Author(s):  
P Caldentey ◽  
N P Brennan ◽  
T Heimann ◽  
J M Gardiner

Common snook Centropomus undecimalis is an important estuarine-dependent predatory fish species. In Florida, the decline of wild stocks, due mainly to fishing pressure and loss of habitat, has led to increasingly restrictive management actions in the last 50 years. This has also promoted its culture for stock enhancement as one of many management actions. Stocking efforts indicate that survival of snook fingerlings can be poor and improvements could be achieved through prerelease conditioning. In this study we compared prey capture kinematics between naïve hatchery juvenile snook and wild conspecifics. Capture behavior, quantified with high-speed cameras, identified specific differences in prey capture of hatchery and wild snook. Naïve juvenile hatchery snook exposed to live prey made fewer attempts to feed, had longer delays in the time to strike, exhibited higher strike velocities and engulfed prey earlier in the gape cycle, and had less overall feeding success compared to wild fish. However, experience with repeated live prey feeding events quickly improved hatchery snook feeding success, similar to wild fish. Therefore, prerelease training via exposure to live prey could improve feeding performance and overall fate of snook released into the wild.

1990 ◽  
Vol 68 (10) ◽  
pp. 2192-2198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vincent L. Bels

High-speed cinematography was employed to study the mechanics of prey capture in Anolis equestris. Capture of live prey (adult locusts) consists of a cyclic movement of the upper and lower jaws combined with tongue protraction. Kinematic profiles are presented for the jaws, tongue, and forelimbs. The tongue is projected during the "slow open" stage and most of the "fast open" stage. The tongue protrudes beyond the mandibular symphysis during the slow open stage, and rotates simultaneously around a transverse anteromedian axis. The prey is thus contacted by the dorsal sticky surface of the tongue, and then pulled backward into the oral cavity by a combination of a forward movement of the jaws and retraction of the tongue. Gape angle, defined as the angle between the upper and lower jaws, continues to increase during the initial stages of tongue retraction. During the capture process, the anterior part of the body lunges forward, followed by a return to its original position; this displacement is mediated by the forelimbs, which usually remain well anchored to the floor. The cyclic food-capture movements of the jaws and tongue–hyoid system in A. equestris (Iguanidae) and Chameleo dilepis (Chamaeleontidae) are compared. I argue that one of the primary selection forces in the evolution of the different mechanisms of prey prehension in these two lizard groups was enhancement of the locomotor system and, consequently, foraging ability.


1998 ◽  
Vol 201 (16) ◽  
pp. 2433-2444 ◽  
Author(s):  
LA Ferry-Graham

Recent work on teleosts suggests that attack behaviors or kinematics may be modified by a predator on the basis of the size of the prey or the ability of the prey to sense predators and escape capture (elusivity). Sharks are generally presumed to be highly visual predators; thus, it is reasonable to expect that they might also be capable of such behavioral modulation. In this study, I investigated the effect of prey item size and type on prey-capture behavior in leopard sharks (Triakis semifasciata) that had been acclimated to feeding in the laboratory. Using high-speed video, sharks were filmed feeding on two sizes of the same prey item (thawed shrimp pieces) and two potentially more elusive prey items (live earthworms and live mud shrimp). In leopard sharks, little effect of prey elusivity was found for kinematic variables during prey capture. However, the large proportion of successful captures of the live prey suggests that they did not prove to be truly elusive prey items for the leopard shark. There were significant size effects on prey-capture kinematics, with the larger non-elusive items inducing greater head expansion during prey capture. Ram-suction index values also indicated that strikes on large, non-elusive prey had a significantly larger suction component than strikes on similar small prey items. This finding is interesting given that the two sizes of non-elusive prey item offered no differential challenge in terms of a performance consequence (reduced capture success).


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 559
Author(s):  
Lakshminath Kundanati ◽  
Prashant Das ◽  
Nicola M. Pugno

Aquatic predatory insects, like the nymphs of a dragonfly, use rapid movements to catch their prey and it presents challenges in terms of movements due to drag forces. Dragonfly nymphs are known to be voracious predators with structures and movements that are yet to be fully understood. Thus, we examine two main mouthparts of the dragonfly nymph (Libellulidae: Insecta: Odonata) that are used in prey capturing and cutting the prey. To observe and analyze the preying mechanism under water, we used high-speed photography and, electron microscopy. The morphological details suggest that the prey-capturing labium is a complex grasping mechanism with additional sensory organs that serve some functionality. The time taken for the protraction and retraction of labium during prey capture was estimated to be 187 ± 54 ms, suggesting that these nymphs have a rapid prey mechanism. The Young’s modulus and hardness of the mandibles were estimated to be 9.1 ± 1.9 GPa and 0.85 ± 0.13 GPa, respectively. Such mechanical properties of the mandibles make them hard tools that can cut into the exoskeleton of the prey and also resistant to wear. Thus, studying such mechanisms with their sensory capabilities provides a unique opportunity to design and develop bioinspired underwater deployable mechanisms.


1991 ◽  
Vol 159 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
PETER C. WAINWRIGHT ◽  
DAVID M. KRAKLAU ◽  
ALBERT F. BENNETT

The kinematics of prey capture by the chamaeleonid lizard Chamaeleo oustaleti were studied using high-speed cinematography. Three feeding sequences from each of two individuals were analyzed for strike distances of 20 and 35 cm, at 30°C. Ten distances and angles were measured from sequential frames beginning approximately 0.5 s prior to tongue projection and continuing for about 1.0 s. Sixteen additional variables, documenting maximum excursions and the timing of events, were calculated from the kinematic profiles. Quantified descriptions of head, hyoid and tongue movements are presented. Previously unrecognized rapid protraction of the hyobranchial skeleton simultaneously with the onset of tongue projection was documented and it is proposed that this assists the accelerator muscle in powering tongue projection. Acceleration of the tongue occurred in about 20ms, reaching a maximum acceleration of 486 m s−2 and maximum velocity of 5.8m s−1 in 35 cm strikes. Deceleration of the tongue usually began within 5 ms before prey contract and the direction of tongue movement was reversed within 10 ms of prey contact. Retraction of the tongue, caused by shortening of the retractor muscles, reached a maximum velocity of 2.99 ms−1 and was complete 330 ms after prey contact. Projection distance influences many aspects of prey capture kinematics, particularly projection time, tongue retraction time and the extent of gape and head movements during tongue retraction, all of which are smaller in shorter feedings. Though several features of the chameleon strike have apparently been retained from lizards not capable of ballistic tongue projection, key differences are documented. Unlike members of a related family, the Agamidae, C. oustaleti uses no body lunge during prey capture, exhibits gape reduction during tongue projection and strongly depresses the head and jaws during tongue retraction. Note: Present address: Department of Biological Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA.


2019 ◽  
Vol 48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ricardo Luís Mendes de Oliveira ◽  
Leilane Bruna Gomes dos Santos ◽  
Nelson Gomes da Silva Neto ◽  
Scarlatt Paloma Alves da Silva ◽  
Felipe dos Santos Silva ◽  
...  

1992 ◽  
Vol 70 (10) ◽  
pp. 1886-1896 ◽  
Author(s):  
Véronique Goosse ◽  
Vincent L. Bels

High-speed cinematography (100 frames/s) was used to allow quantitative analysis of the kinematic profiles of tongue and jaw displacements during chemosensory activities in the scleroglossan lizard Lacerta viridis. The types of tongue flicking were simple downward extensions (SDE), single oscillations (SOC), and submultiple oscillations (SMOC) of the tongue out of the mouth. The SMOC type involves a downward or upward movement of the tongue performed before a typical oscillation and it is therefore suggested that this is an intermediate category of flick between the typical SOC and MOC of lizards. Closing and opening of the mouth in SDE, SOC, and SMOC cycles may or may not be separated by a stationary stage during which the jaws are held open at a constant gape. The duration of this stationary interval increases from SDE to SMOC. Gape cycles do not show any division into slow and fast stages. The gape is produced largely by depression of the lower jaw; the upper jaw is slightly elevated by protrusion of the tongue. Patterns of correlation of kinematic variables depicting jaw and tongue movements differed between SDE, SOC, and SMOC. A principal component analysis shows that the three flick types overlap in a multivariate space constructed from the kinematic variables depicting jaw and tongue displacements. Overlap between SOC and SMOC categories is greater than that between SOC, SMOC, and SDE categories. The kinematic patterns of tongue displacement during SMOC in Lacerta viridis show similarities with those of MOC in other lizards and in snakes. Kinematically, the pattern of jaw and tongue displacements of Lacerta viridis during chemosensory activities shows similarities with those that occur during drinking and prey capture.


2006 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip S.L Anderson ◽  
Mark W Westneat

Placoderms are a diverse group of armoured fishes that dominated the aquatic ecosystems of the Devonian Period, 415–360 million years ago. The bladed jaws of predators such as Dunkleosteus suggest that these animals were the first vertebrates to use rapid mouth opening and a powerful bite to capture and fragment evasive prey items prior to ingestion. Here, we develop a biomechanical model of force and motion during feeding in Dunkleosteus terrelli that reveals a highly kinetic skull driven by a unique four-bar linkage mechanism. The linkage system has a high-speed transmission for jaw opening, producing a rapid expansion phase similar to modern fishes that use suction during prey capture. Jaw closing muscles power an extraordinarily strong bite, with an estimated maximal bite force of over 4400 N at the jaw tip and more than 5300 N at the rear dental plates, for a large individual (6 m in total length). This bite force capability is the greatest of all living or fossil fishes and is among the most powerful bites in animals.


1995 ◽  
Vol 198 (9) ◽  
pp. 2025-2040 ◽  
Author(s):  
D Ritter ◽  
K Nishikawa

High-speed videography and muscle denervation experiments were used to quantify the feeding kinematics of Hemisus marmoratum and to test hypotheses of muscle function. The feeding behavior of H. marmoratum, which feeds on ants and termites, differs radically from that of other frogs that have been studied. During feeding in H. marmoratum, the tongue 'telescopes' straight out of the mouth, as opposed to the 'flipping' tongue trajectory observed in most other frogs. At the time of prey contact, two lateral lobes of tissue at the tongue tip envelop the prey. These lateral lobes are capable of applying significant pulling forces to the prey and the tongue is, therefore, described as prehensile. The trajectory of the tongue can be adjusted throughout protraction so that the frog can 'aim' its tongue in all three dimensions; distance, azimuth and elevation. Bilateral denervation of the genioglossus muscles results in a complete lack of tongue protraction, indicating that the genioglossus muscle is the main tongue protractor in H. marmoratum, as in other frogs. Thus, H. marmoratum provides strong evidence of functional conservatism of the genioglossus muscle within anurans. Bilateral denervation of the hyoglossus muscle indicates that although the hyoglossus is involved in several aspects of normal tongue retraction, including the prehensile capability of the tongue tip, it is not necessary for tongue retraction. Unilateral denervation of the genioglossus muscle causes significant deviation of the tongue towards the denervated side, providing evidence for a mechanism of lateral tongue aiming. On the basis of the kinematics of prey capture, the anatomy of the tongue and the results of the denervation experiments, we propose that H. marmoratum uses a hydraulic mechanism to protract its tongue.


1985 ◽  
Vol 114 (1) ◽  
pp. 443-461 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. L. Tamm ◽  
A. G. Moss

High-speed cinematography of feeding Pleurobrachia revealed a stereo-typed sequence of ciliary motor responses underlying the feeding behaviour of this ctenophore. Prey capture by a tentacle first elicited high frequency beating in all comb rows, propelling the animal forward at a rapid speed for several seconds. This was followed by a brief period of inactivity on some or all comb rows. Then comb rows adjacent to the catching tentacle beat in the reverse direction, causing the ctenophore to spin rapidly toward this side and sweeping the prey-catching tentacle to the opened mouth, which bent towards it. After engulfing the prey, the animal slowly swam forward to re-set the relaxed tentacles as a fishing net. The patterns, timing, onset and coordination of these ciliary responses, particularly the unilateral reversal of comb rows on the catching side, are analysed with respect to possible conducting pathways mediating this behaviour.


<i>Abstract</i>.—In designing research programs, scientists may constrain development of sequential hypotheses because of perceptions about logistical constraints to using new technologies in monitoring or experimental design. Using trusted, familiar methods can supersede asking which hypotheses would have the greatest impact and what method(s) are required to test them. To help maintain a ‘problem-oriented’ approach, rather than a ‘methods oriented’ one, we could strive to remain aware of new innovations and applications in research; this is particularly so for tagging technology, when new methods emerge. Research enabled by recent innovations can be incorporated through collaborations with other scientists or by working directly with vendors to implement and refine new tag technologies and applications. Some tagging studies can be improved by using multiple marking methods (e.g. see recent applications of various tag technologies with common snook <i>Centropomus undecimalis </i>and red drum <i>Sciaenops ocellatus </i>in Florida to evaluate recruitment, mortality, and habitat use of different life stages; Adams et al. 2006; Bennett 2006; Marcinkiewicz, 2007; Brennan et al. 2008; Tringali et al. 2008). Here we consider a few case studies that have implemented a variety of tagging methods to explore poorly understood factors that mediate growth and survival and the effectiveness of hatchery releases to help replenish depleted marine fish stocks.


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