Biomechanics Commons^™

Thrust Production And Chordal Flexion Of The Flukes Of Bottlenose Dolphins Performing Tail Stands At Different Efforts, David Kramer, Maura J. Sheehan, Frank E. Fish

Biology Faculty Publications

Dolphins have become famous for their ability to perform a wide variety of athletic and acrobatic behaviors including high-speed swimming, maneuverability, porpoising and tail stands. Tail stands are a behavior where part of the body is held vertically above the water's surface, achieved through thrust produced by horizontal tail fluke oscillations. Strong, efficient propulsors are needed to generate the force required to support the dolphin's body weight, exhibiting chordwise and spanwise flexibility throughout the stroke cycle. To determine how thrust production, fluke flexibility and tail stroke kinematics vary with effort, six adult bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) were tested at three …