Vortex arrays and ciliary tangles underlie the feeding-swimming tradeoff in starfish larvae

Authors: William Gilpin, Vivek N. Prakash & Manu Prakash

Link: https://www.nature.com/articles/nphys3981

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nphys3981

Abstract: Many marine invertebrates have larval stages covered in linear arrays of beating cilia, which propel the animal while simultaneously entraining planktonic prey1. These bands are strongly conserved across taxa spanning four major superphyla2,3, and they are responsible for the unusual morphologies of many invertebrate larvae4,5. However, few studies have investigated their underlying hydrodynamics6,7. Here, we study the ciliary bands of starfish larvae, and discover a beautiful pattern of slowly evolving vortices that surrounds the swimming animals. Closer inspection of the bands reveals unusual ciliary ‘tangles’ analogous to topological defects that break up and re-form as the animal adjusts its swimming stroke. Quantitative experiments and modelling demonstrate that these vortices create a physical trade-off between feeding and swimming in heterogeneous environments, which manifests as distinct flow patterns or ‘eigenstrokes’ representing each behaviour—potentially implicating neuronal control of cilia. This quantitative interplay between larval form and hydrodynamic function may generalize to other invertebrates with ciliary bands, and illustrates the potential effects of active boundary conditions in other biological and synthetic systems.

Additional Links: News and Views, Nature Physics.
A Gallery of Fluid Motion Video submission of this work also won the 2016 APS/DFD Milton van Dyke Award. Video and the 2016 Nikon Small World Competition.