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An adhesive locomotion model for the rock-climbing fish, Beaufortia kweichowensis.

ABSTRACT: The rock-climbing fish (Beaufortia kweichowensis) adheres to slippery, fouled surfaces and crawls both forward and backward in torrential streams. During locomotion, two suckers can be distinguished. Here, the general skeletal structure of the rock-climbing fish was determined using microtomography. Friction and adhesion were positively correlated, as were friction and fin ray angle. The unique adhesive locomotion system used by the rock-climbing fish was observed with a high speed camera. This system comprised two anisotropic suckers bearing two paired fins and two girdle muscles. A locomotion model was established based on these results. In this model, the fin states controlled the direction of motion using anisotropic friction, and alternate contractions of the girdle muscles provided propulsion during bidirectional crawling. This adhesive locomotion system was compared with other biological locomotion mechanisms. Based on these comparisons, we hypothesized that this novel system might represent an energy-saving solution for undulatory underwater vertical movement without detaching from the substrate.

SUBMITTER: Wang J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6851163 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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An adhesive locomotion model for the rock-climbing fish, Beaufortia kweichowensis.

Wang Jinrong J Ji Chen C Wang Wei W Zou Jun J Yang Huayong H Pan Min M

Scientific reports 20191112 1

The rock-climbing fish (Beaufortia kweichowensis) adheres to slippery, fouled surfaces and crawls both forward and backward in torrential streams. During locomotion, two suckers can be distinguished. Here, the general skeletal structure of the rock-climbing fish was determined using microtomography. Friction and adhesion were positively correlated, as were friction and fin ray angle. The unique adhesive locomotion system used by the rock-climbing fish was observed with a high speed camera. This ...[more]

PMID: 31719624

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Project description:Understandably, most locomotor analyses of bats have focused on flight mechanics and behaviors. However, we investigated nonflight locomotion in an effort to glean deeper insights into the evolutionary history of bats. We used high-speed video (300 Hz) to film and compare walking and climbing mechanics and kinematics between several species of the suborders Megachiroptera (Pteropodidae) versus Microchiroptera (Vespertilionidae and Phyllostomatidae). We found fundamentally distinctive behaviors, functional abilities, and performance outcomes between groups, but nearly homogeneous outcomes within groups. Megachiropterans exhibited climbing techniques and skills not found in microchiropterans and which aligned with other fully arboreal mammals. Megachiropterans climbed readily when placed in a head-up posture on a vertical surface, showed significantly greater ability than microchiropterans to abduct and extend the reach of their limbs, and climbed at a greater pace by using a more aggressive ipsilateral gait, at times being supported by only a single contact point. In addition, megachiropterans showed little ability to employ basic walking mechanics when placed on the ground, also a pattern observed in some highly adapted arboreal mammals. Conversely, microchiropterans resisted climbing vertical surfaces in a head-up posture, showed significantly less extension of their limbs, and employed a less-aggressive, slower contralateral gait with three points of contact. When walking, microchiropterans used the same gait they did when climbing which is representative of basic tetrapod terrestrial mechanics. Curiously, megachiropterans cycled their limbs significantly faster when climbing than when attempting to walk, whereas microchiropterans cycled their limbs at significantly faster rates when walking than when climbing. We contend that nonflight locomotion mechanics give a deep evolutionary view into the ancestral es locomotor platform on which flight was built in each of these groups.

Project description:Rock climbing is among the outdoor activities that have undergone the highest growth since the second half of the 20th century. As a result, cliff habitats, historically one of the least disturbed by human colonization worldwide, are facing more intense human pressure than ever before. However, there is little data on the impact of this activity in plant-communities, and such information is indispensable for adequate manager decision-making. The goal of this study was to determine the impact of rock climbing on plant communities in terms of cover, richness, and composition in relation to climbing intensity on typical Mediterranean limestone cliffs. Three rock-climbing sites were selected in the Baetic range (SE Spain), corresponding to qualitative categories of climbing frequentation: i)"low" (low frequentation with intermittent climbing), ii)"medium" (high frequentation without overcrowding), and iii) "high" (high frequentation with overcrowding). Within each site, we selected climbing routes and adjacent areas free of climbing, then we carried out a photoplot-based sampling by rappelling. We analysed the images to calculate: richness, species cover, and total cover. This study shows that rock climbing negatively affected the cliff plant community at all three study sites. A significant decrease in plant cover, species richness and a shift in the community composition were recorded for climbed areas, the cover being the variable most sensitive to rock climbing. Impact observed proved to be related to the frequentation level. Low-frequentation sites, with usually more specialized climbers, underwent relatively mild damages, whereas at high frequentation sites the impact was severe and the conservation of the species, especially rare ones, became jeopardized. Our study is the first one available to investigate climbing impact on plant communities in Mediterranean areas, but more research on the impact of rock climbing is needed to assess the regulation of this activity. Regarding management guidelines, we propose a management guideline protocol to evaluate climbing routes and design: i) "Sites free of climbing", ii) "Strictly regulated climbing routes", iii) "Mildly regulated climbing routes", or iv) "Free climbing routes".

Dataset Information

An adhesive locomotion model for the rock-climbing fish, Beaufortia kweichowensis.

Publications

An adhesive locomotion model for the rock-climbing fish, Beaufortia kweichowensis.

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