Although the functional properties of shark skin have been of considerable interest to both biologists and engineers because of the complex hydrodynamic effects of surface roughness, no study to date ...has successfully fabricated a flexible biomimetic shark skin that allows detailed study of hydrodynamic function. We present the first study of the design, fabrication and hydrodynamic testing of a synthetic, flexible, shark skin membrane. A three-dimensional (3D) model of shark skin denticles was constructed using micro-CT imaging of the skin of the shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus). Using 3D printing, thousands of rigid synthetic shark denticles were placed on flexible membranes in a controlled, linear-arrayed pattern. This flexible 3D printed shark skin model was then tested in water using a robotic flapping device that allowed us to either hold the models in a stationary position or move them dynamically at their self-propelled swimming speed. Compared with a smooth control model without denticles, the 3D printed shark skin showed increased swimming speed with reduced energy consumption under certain motion programs. For example, at a heave frequency of 1.5 Hz and an amplitude of ± 1 cm, swimming speed increased by 6.6% and the energy cost-of-transport was reduced by 5.9%. In addition, a leading-edge vortex with greater vorticity than the smooth control was generated by the 3D printed shark skin, which may explain the increased swimming speeds. The ability to fabricate synthetic biomimetic shark skin opens up a wide array of possible manipulations of surface roughness parameters, and the ability to examine the hydrodynamic consequences of diverse skin denticle shapes present in different shark species.
The structure of shark skin has been the subject of numerous studies and recently biomimetic shark skin has been fabricated with rigid denticles (scales) on a flexible substrate. This artificial skin ...can bend and generate thrust when attached to a mechanical controller. The ability to control the manufacture of biomimetic shark skin facilitates manipulation of surface parameters and understanding the effects of changing denticle patterns on locomotion. In this paper we investigate the effect of changing the spacing and arrangement of denticles on the surface of biomimetic shark skin on both static and dynamic locomotor performance. We designed 3D-printed flexible membranes with different denticle patterns and spacings: (1) staggered-overlapped, (2) linear-overlapped, and (3) linear-non-overlapped, and compared these to a 3D-printed smooth-surfaced control. These 3D printed shark skin models were then tested in a flow tank with a mechanical flapping device that allowed us to either hold the models in a stationary position or move them dynamically. We swam the membranes at a frequency of 1 Hz with different heave amplitudes (from 1 cm to 3 cm) while measuring forces, torques, self-propelled swimming speed, and cost of transport (COT). Static tests revealed drag reduction of denticle patterns compared to a smooth control at low speeds, but increased drag at speeds above 25 cm s−1. However, during dynamic (swimming) tests, the staggered-overlapped pattern produced the fastest swimming speeds with no significant increase in the COT at lower heave values. For instance, at a heave frequency of 1 Hz and amplitude of 1 cm, swimming speed of the staggered-overlapped pattern increased by 25.2% over the smooth control. At higher heave amplitudes, significantly faster self-propelled swimming speeds were achieved by the staggered-overlapped pattern, but with higher COT. Only the staggered-overlapped pattern provides a significant swimming performance advantage over the smooth control and the other two denticle patterns. Quantitative hydrodynamic comparisons among skin models where control over manufacture allows alteration of design parameters provides a useful experimental tool for future work on the considerable natural diversity of shark skin denticles both among species and on different body locations.
Sharks are a globally threatened group of marine fishes that often breed in their natal region of origin. There has even been speculation that female sharks return to their exact birthplace to breed ...(‘natal philopatry’), which would have important conservation implications. Genetic profiling of lemon sharks (Negaprion brevirostris) from 20 consecutive cohorts (1993–2012) at Bimini, Bahamas, showed that certain females faithfully gave birth at this site for nearly two decades. At least six females born in the 1993–1997 cohorts returned to give birth 14–17 years later, providing the first direct evidence of natal philopatry in the chondrichthyans. Long‐term fidelity to specific nursery sites coupled with natal philopatry highlights the merits of emerging spatial and local conservation efforts for these threatened predators.
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The ecomorphological diversity of extinct elasmobranchs is incompletely known. Here, we describe
, a bizarre probable planktivorous shark from early Late Cretaceous open marine deposits in Mexico.
, ...tentatively assigned to Lamniformes, is characterized by hypertrophied, slender pectoral fins. This previously unknown body plan represents an unexpected evolutionary experimentation with underwater flight among sharks, more than 30 million years before the rise of manta and devil rays (Mobulidae), and shows that winglike pectoral fins have evolved independently in two distantly related clades of filter-feeding elasmobranchs. This newly described group of highly specialized long-winged sharks (Aquilolamnidae) displays an aquilopelagic-like ecomorphotype and may have occupied, in late Mesozoic seas, the ecological niche filled by mobulids and other batoids after the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary.
Human–shark encounters garner a disproportionate amount of public attention. Long-term datasets from shark mitigation programs can help determine the environmental conditions that influence abundance ...of potentially dangerous sharks. We used 25 yr (1992–2016) of shark catches from the New South Wales (NSW) Shark Meshing Program (SMP) to model the abundance of all potentially dangerous shark species (tiger Galeocerdo cuvier, white Carcharodon carcharias and whaler sharks genus Carcharhinus) and individual species/genus to determine: (1) the temporal/spatial variability in catches and (2) the oceanographic and physical variables that could influence abundance. Too few tiger sharks were caught to individually model their abundance. Generalised additive mixed models revealed seasonal and inter-annual abundance trends that differ between white and whaler sharks. Overall, sea surface temperatures (SSTs), years with SSTs colder or warmer than the long-term average, El Niño events, moon illumination, and beach length influenced the abundance of shark groups tested. White shark abundance was highest during water temperatures of ~17–18°C and declined when SST increased above 19°C. Whaler abundance increased with higher SSTs. Shark abundance was higher during El Niño events than during La Niña, although the number of whalers caught was highest during neutral phases. All groups showed a decrease in the number of catches with increasing moon illumination and higher abundance on longer beaches. These results may aid public safety methods aimed at reducing human–shark encounters by highlighting when higher numbers of sharks may occur.
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Stable‐isotope analyses (δ13C, δ15N and δ34S) of multiple tissues (fin, muscle, red blood cells and plasma), revealed ontogenetic shifts in resource use by grey reef sharks Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos ...and resource partitioning with silvertip sharks Carcharhinus albimarginatus within the British Indian Ocean Territory marine protected area (MPA). Resource partitioning varied temporally, with C. albimarginatus feeding on more pelagic prey during October to January, potentially attributable to an influx of pelagic prey from outside the MPA at that time. Reef sharks may therefore be affected by processes outside an MPA, even if the sharks do not leave the MPA.
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Free-diving sharks Meekan, Mark; Gleiss, Adrian
Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science),
05/2023, Volume:
380, Issue:
6645
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Hammerhead sharks hold their breath when diving to regulate body temperature.
In the face of accelerating climate change, conservation strategies will need to consider how marine animals deal with forecast environmental change as well as ongoing threats. We used 10 yr ...(2009−2018) of data from commercial fisheries and a bather protection program along the coast of New South Wales (NSW), southeastern Australia, to investigate (1) spatial and temporal patterns of occurrence in bull sharks and (2) environmental factors affecting bull shark occurrence along the coast of NSW. Predicted future distribution for this species was modelled for the forecast strengthening East Australian Current. Bull sharks were mostly harvested in small to larger estuaries, with average depth and rainfall responsible for contrasting patterns for each of the fisheries. There was an increase in the occurrence of bull sharks over the last decade, particularly among coastal setline fisheries, associated with seasonal availability of thermal gradients >22°C and both westward and southward coastal currents stronger than 0.15 and 0.60 m s−1, respectively, during the austral summer. Our model predicts a 3 mo increase in the availability of favourable water temperatures along the entire coast of NSW for bull sharks by 2030. This coastline provides a uniquely favourable topography for range expansion in the face of a southerly shift of warmer waters, and habitat is unlikely to be a limiting factor for bull sharks in the future. Such a southerly shift in distribution has implications for the management of bull sharks both in commercial fisheries and for mitigation of shark−human interactions.
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Although the whale shark Rhincodon typus is the largest extant fish, it was not described until 1828 and by 1986 there were only 320 records of this species. Since then, growth in tourism and marine ...recreation globally has lead to a significant increase in the number of sightings and several areas with annual occurrences have been identified, spurring a surge of research on the species. Simultaneously, there was a great expansion in targeted R. typus fisheries to supply the Asian restaurant trade, as well as a largely un‐quantified by‐catch of the species in purse‐seine tuna fisheries. Currently R. typus is listed by the IUCN as vulnerable, due mainly to the effects of targeted fishing in two areas. Photo‐identification has shown that R. typus form seasonal size and sex segregated feeding aggregations and that a large proportion of fish in these aggregations are philopatric in the broadest sense, tending to return to, or remain near, a particular site. Somewhat conversely, satellite tracking studies have shown that fish from these aggregations can migrate at ocean‐basin scales and genetic studies have, to date, found little graphic differentiation globally. Conservation approaches are now informed by observational and environmental studies that have provided insight into the feeding habits of the species and its preferred habitats. Notwithstanding these advances, there remain notable gaps in the knowledge of this species particularly with respect to the life history of neonates and adults who are not found in the feeding aggregations.
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1. Animal search patterns reflect sensory perception ranges combined with memory and knowledge of the surrounding environment. 2. Random walks are used when the locations of resources are unknown, ...whereas directed walks should be optimal when the location of favourable habitats is known. However, directed walks have been quantified for very few species. 3. We re-analysed tracking data from three shark species to determine whether they were using directed walks, and if so, over which spatial scales. Fractal analysis was used to quantify how movement structure varied with spatial scale and determine whether the sharks were using patches. 4. Tiger sharks performed directed walks at large spatial scales (at least 6—8 km). Thresher sharks also showed directed movement (at scales of 400—1900 m), and adult threshers were able to orient at greater scales than juveniles, which may suggest that learning improves the ability to perform directed walks. Blacktip reef sharks had small home ranges, high site fidelity and showed no evidence of oriented movements at large scales. 5. There were inter- and intraspecific differences in path structure and patch size, although most individuals showed scale-dependent movements. Furthermore, some individuals of each species performed movements similar to a correlated random walk. 6. Sharks can perform directed walks over large spatial scales, with scales of movements reflecting site fidelity and home range size. Understanding when and where directed walks occur is crucial for developing more accurate population-level dispersal models.
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