Terrestrial friction-reducing properties of mucus and scale anisotropy in the amphibious Northern Snakehead (Channa argus).

The mucus coating around a fish's body is essential to its survival. It contains antimicrobial properties, aids in drag reduction, and protects against physical damage. It is versatile in the aquatic environment but little is known about the role of mucus in amphibious fishes.

Biphasic burrowing in Atlantic hagfish (Myxine limosa).

Myxine limosa is a burrowing species of hagfish that occurs in the western North Atlantic in areas with muddy substrate and at depths generally greater than 100 meters. Burrowing of M. limosa has been observed from submersibles, but little is known about the behavior of these animals within the substrate or the biomechanical mechanisms involved.

Terrestrial capabilities of invasive fishes and their management implications.

Amphibious fishes have many adaptations that make them successful in a wide variety of conditions, including air-breathing, terrestrial locomotor capabilities, and extreme tolerance of poor water quality. However, the traits that make them highly adaptable may allow these fishes to successfully establish themselves outside of their native regions. In particular, the terrestrial capabilities of invasive amphibious fishes allow them to disperse overland, unlike fully aquatic invasive fishes, making their management more complicated.

From reductionism to synthesis: The case of hagfish slime.

Reductionist strategies aim to understand the mechanisms of complex systems by studying individual parts and their interactions. In this review, we discuss how reductionist approaches have shed light on the structure, function, and production of a complex biomaterial - hagfish defensive slime. Hagfish slime is an extremely dilute hydrogel-like material composed of seawater, mucus, and silk-like proteins that can deploy rapidly.

Why did the invasive walking catfish cross the road? Terrestrial chemoreception described for the first time in a fish.

Clarias batrachus (walking catfish) is an invasive species in Florida, renowned for its air-breathing and terrestrial locomotor capabilities. However, it is unknown how this species orients in terrestrial environments. Furthermore, while anecdotal life history information is widespread for this species in its nonnative range, little of this information exists in the literature.

Evolutionary optimization of an anatomical suction cup: Lip collagen content and its correlation with flow and substrate in Neotropical suckermouth catfishes (Loricarioidei).

In riverine ecosystems, downstream drag caused by fast-flowing water poses a significant challenge to rheophilic organisms. In neotropical rivers, many members of a diverse radiation of suckermouth catfishes (Loricarioidei) resist drag in part by using modified lips that form an oral suction cup composed of thick flesh. Histological composition and morphology of this cup are interspecifically highly variable.

A walking behavior generates functional overland movements in the tidepool sculpin, Oligocottus maculosus.

Tidepool sculpins (Oligocottus maculosus) have been observed moving overland in the rocky intertidal, and we documented the terrestrial walking behavior that they use to accomplish this. We quantified the terrestrial movements of O. maculosus and compared them to (1) their aquatic locomotion, (2) terrestrial locomotion of closely-related subtidal species (Leptocottus armatus and Icelinus borealis), and (3) terrestrial movements of walking catfishes (Clarias spp.

Where do fish go when stranded on land? Terrestrial orientation of the mangrove rivulus Kryptolebias marmoratus.

The goal of the present study was to determine which sensory cues the mangrove rivulus Kryptolebias marmoratus, a quasi-amphibious, hermaphroditic fish, uses to orient in an unfamiliar terrestrial environment. In a laboratory setting, K. marmoratus were placed on a terrestrial test arena and were provided the opportunity to move toward reflective surfaces, water, dark colours v.

Look before you leap: Visual navigation and terrestrial locomotion of the intertidal killifish Fundulus heteroclitus.

Mummichogs (Fundulus heteroclitus; Cyprinodontiformes) are intertidal killifish that can breathe air and locomote on land. Our goals were to characterize the terrestrial locomotion of mummichogs and determine their method of navigation towards water in a terrestrial environment. We used high-speed video to record behavior during stranding experiments and found that mummichogs use a tail-flip jump to move overland, similarly to other Cyprinodontiformes.