Natures wonders: fish fin biodynamics (Introduction)

by David Turell , Sunday, August 15, 2021, 16:31 (984 days ago) @ David Turell

Both stiff and flexible:

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/08/210811162858.htm

"Francois Barthelat, senior author of the study, noted that fins are remarkable because they can achieve feats of dexterity even though they don't contain a single muscle. (Fish move these structures by twitching sets of muscles located at the base of the fins).

"'If you look at a fin, you'll see that it's made of many stiff 'rays,'" said Barthelat, professor in the Paul M. Rady Department of Mechanical Engineering. "Each of those rays can be manipulated individually just like your fingers, but there are 20 or 30 of them in each fin."

***

"To understand how ordinary run-of-the-mill goldfish achieve similar feats every day, take a close look at these structures under the microscope. Each of the rays in a fin has a layered structure, a bit like a bakery éclair: The spikes include two layers of stiff and mineralized materials called hemitrichs that surround an inner layer of spongy collagen.

"But, Barthelat said, those layers of hemitrichs aren't solid. They're divided into segments, as if someone had cut up the éclair into bite-sized pieces.

"'Until recently, the function of those segments hadn't been clear," he said.

***

"'All of the segments, essentially, create these tiny hinges along the ray," Barthelat said. "When you try to compress or pull on those bony layers, they have a very high stiffness. This is critical for the ray to resist and produce hydrodynamic forces that push on water. But if you try to bend individual bony layers, they're very compliant, and that part is critical for the rays to deform easily from the base muscles."

***

"Barthelat added that he and his colleagues have only scratched the surface of the wide diversity of fins in the fish world. Flying fish, for example, deploy their fins to glide above the water, while mudskippers use their fins like legs to walk on land."

Comment: this can be understood as a precisely perfect design to fit a specific purpose, marked agility while swimming in water. Cannot be developed in chancy stages per Darwin theory.