Theoretical and computational fluid dynamics of an attached remora ( Echeneis naucrates )

Buried in the sand: Uncovering the ecological roles and importance of rays

“…removal of parasites [Ritter & Brunnschweiler, 2003]) and remora (e.g. food acquisition, risk aversion and transportation [Norman, 1939; Ritter & Brunnschweiler, 2003]) that would suggest a mutualistic relationship, there are hydrodynamic and body condition issues created by an attached remora (Beckert, Flammang, Anderson, & Nadler, 2016; Schwartz, 1977) that justify further investigation into the costs and benefits of attached remoras. Cleaning mutualisms also exist (Vaughan, Grutter, Costello, & Hutson, 2017), where southern stingrays and giant manta rays have been observed displaying behavioural changes at cleaning stations to signal the cleaner fish (O’Shea, Kingsford, & Seymour, 2010; Snelson, Gruber, Murru, & Schmid, 1990).…”

Knowing when to stick: touch receptors found in the remora adhesive disc

“…Remoras (family Echeneidae) are well known for their hitch-hiking behaviour; these fishes attach to other organisms such as sharks, whales, billfish and turtles [1][2][3] to take advantage of greater locomotor efficiency, increased probability of meeting mates, reduced predation and access to food such as parasites living on the host. The remora adhesive disc is capable of attaching to surfaces of varying roughness and stiffness and remaining attached under high shear conditions, where drag forces impart pressure strain-inducing sliding relative to the host [4,5]. Derived from dorsal fin elements [6,7], the adhesive disc is comprised of a central series of flat pectinated, or comb-like, lamellae surrounded by a fleshy lip (figure 1).…”

A Model of Interfacial Permeability for Soft Seals in Marine-Organism, Suction-Based Adhesion

“…potentially arising from fluid drag due to host locomotion or tidal motions), which may be more commonly encountered [9]. In remora's case, long-term attachment is important for maintaining a reliable food source and locating mates [13,19,20], and its attachment strength exceeds the drag forces applied during sustained swimming by an order of magnitude [7,26]. Detachment of the remora by the host requires extraordinary effort occasionally observed as erratic body bending or breaching behavior [14,15,18].…”