1 / 27

The biomechanics of bloated bloodsuckers

The biomechanics of bloated bloodsuckers. Dave Ellerby, Wellesley College. Understanding Animal Movement. Energy, Performance and Fitness. Muscle and movement. …muscles move skeletal elements to transfer power. Muscle and movement: hydrostatic skeletons.

gonzalezj
Download Presentation

The biomechanics of bloated bloodsuckers

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. The biomechanics of bloated bloodsuckers Dave Ellerby, Wellesley College

  2. Understanding Animal Movement

  3. Energy, Performance and Fitness

  4. Muscle and movement …muscles move skeletal elements to transfer power

  5. Muscle and movement: hydrostatic skeletons Rowlerson & Blackshaw (1991), J. Exp. Biol157: 299.

  6. Muscle and movement

  7. Muscle and movement …segmental shape changes drive movement

  8. Neural and neurochemical control Behavior also influenced by neurotransmitters/ hormones Friesen & Kristan (2007), Curr. Op. Neur17: 704.

  9. Harvard University Soft robots ‘Starfish’ - Harvard GoQBot – Tufts University Chembot – iRobot

  10. Crawling …extreme changes in body shape

  11. Swimming …totally different movement, same motor

  12. …still the same motor, plus massive change in size

  13. Dimensional changes during movement Gerry SP and Ellerby DJ (2011). Biology Letters 7, 885-888.

  14. Structural simplicity – functional flexibility Swimming Crawling Feeding How is this achieved? Evolutionary implications?

  15. Don’t swim after eating… …not a hydrodynamically favorable shape!

  16. …crawl instead?

  17. Recovering mobility after feeding Slow swimming recovery, crawling barely impaired.

  18. Muscle and expansion Serotonin added No serotonin Vertebrate muscle

  19. Muscle and expansion Vertebrate cross-striated muscle Obliquely striated muscle

  20. Hormonal modulation of muscle contraction No serotonin Serotonin added …integration of behavioral and mechanical effects

  21. Evolution of blood feeding Apakupakul et al. (1999). Mol. Phylo. Evol. 12, 350-359.. Blood feeding is the ancestral state

  22. The biomechanics of bloated bloodsuckers • Structural simplicity but functional flexibility • Supported by muscle mechanical properties • Neurochemicals integrate behavior and biomechanics

  23. Acknowledgements Shannon Gerry Amanda Hitchcock Johanna Ascher Karin Darakananda Kara Feilich Malika Hayashi Cataia Ives Janet Jeong Grace Jung Arbor Quist Jessica Liao Allison Robbins Michelle Vogelzang Jasmine Wang

More Related