“It was in the oceans that life first evolved and where complex animals have thrived for over 600 million years. Marine animals survive in environments as diverse as tropical coral reefs, polar ice-capped oceans, and the lightless abyssal depths,” says Frank E. Fish from West Chester University and Donna M. Kocak from HARRIS CapRock Communications.
“To deal with the rigors of the marine environment, animals have developed specialized sensory systems (e.g., echolocation, electroreception), mechanisms to deal with pressure (e.g., buoyancy control), strategies to economize on energy (e.g., fusiform body design, schooling, burst-and-glide swimming), armor (e.g., bony scales, mollusk shells), stability mechanisms (e.g., paired and median fins), maneuverability (e.g., flexible bodies, vectored thrust), speed (e.g., high-aspect-ratio oscillatory propulsors, jet propulsion), stealth (e.g., camouflage, low acoustic signature), and use of compliant materials (e.g., collagen, protein rubbers, mucous),” they further write.
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