Non-stick surface for submarines

Post by **Dinyar** » 10 Oct 2003, 18:52

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/3178136.stm

I can imagine that slime coats work in an analogous fashion, but I wonder if some fish -- rheophiles, especially -- have such "nanodontodes" on their surface?

Dinyar

Post by **Silurus** » 10 Oct 2003, 19:08

Sure they do. Tyson calls them "unculi".

Post by **Dinyar** » 10 Oct 2003, 20:13

Please Unculi

, tell us more... What kinds of fish have them, how big are the unculi, etc. And is there a photograph somewhere?

Dinyar

magnum4 · Post by **magnum4** » 10 Oct 2003, 20:21

picture :

(HH's note: these are actually the tubercles on aspredinid skin, and the unculi are the unicellular projections visible as pale spots studding each tubercle).

Post by **Silurus** » 10 Oct 2003, 21:11

Unculi (singular: unculus) are widely found in many ostariophysan groups. All kinds of hillstream fishes have what Tyson refers to as "unculiferous plaques" (large areas of unculi-studded skin): loaches, hillstream catfishes. A group in which unculiferous plaques are very highly developed are the sisoroids (amblycipitids, akysids, sisorids, erethistids and aspredinids).