Jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) and lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) are some of the most energy-effici

Jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) andlampreys (Petromyzon marinus) are some of the most energy-efficient travellers on Earth, but why this is has remained an unsolved mystery - until now. Exciting new research from the University of Florida’s Department of Integrative Biology has finally revealed the magic in their movement: instead of pushing against water like most other animals, they propel themselves forwards by using suction to pull the water towards them. Whereas pushing forward requires the creation of high pressure in the surrounding water, suction makes the most of low-pressure areas of water close to the animal’s body, so that they need considerably less energy to get moving.

Ref: Gemmell, B. J. et al., 2015. Suction-based propulsion as a basis for efficient animal swimming. Nature Communications 6, article 8790 [link]