In last twenty years, biologists, increasingly interested in the mechanics of living organisms, have undertaken many biomechanical studies of living fishes and the mechanical properties of their tissues. Most studies of fish locomotion have sought to simplify the hydrodynamic environment to isolate and thus better understand the complex movements of swimming. Pioneering studies have provided fundamental insights into the kinematics, physiology and hydrodynamics of fish locomotion. Knowledge of the movement and spatial ecology of fishes is of particular importance to managers as it provides information about how fishes are distributed in both space and time.

This book ‘Fish Biomechanics’ reviews and integrates recent developments in research on fish biomechanics, with particular emphasis on experimental results derived from the application of innovative new technologies to this area of research. The contributed chapters are written by leaders in the field, deliver a multidisciplinary approach and integration of the state-of-the-art information on feeding mechanics, breathing mechanics, sensory systems, stability and maneuverability, skeletal systems, muscle structure and performance, and hydrodynamics of steady and burst swimming, including riverine passage of migratory species.

Our primary goal is to design this book serve as a primer to key recent biomechanical findings in fish that have resulted from experimental studies on living fishes. Such an overview cannot be comprehensive, but hopefully will serve as an introduction to current research on the biomechanics of fishes and to key results from recent experimental studies.

This book will appeal to advanced graduate students, practitioners, fish biologists, ecologists, aquaculture industry, as well as aquatic toxicology researchers.