74th Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Fluid Dynamics (November 21, 2021 — November 23, 2021)

V0078: Swimming snakes vortices highlighted with volumetric velocimetry.

Authors

• Vincent Stin, PMMH, CNRS, ESPCI Paris, Université PSL, UMR 7636 CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris, 75005 Paris, France.
• Anthony Herrel, Département Adaptations du Vivant, UMR 7179 CNRS/MNHN., 55 rue Bufon, 75005 Paris, France.
• Ramiro Godoy-Diana, PMMH, CNRS, ESPCI Paris, Université PSL, UMR 7636 CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris, 75005 Paris, France.
• Xavier Bonnet, Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372 CNRS ULR, 79360 Villiers-en-Bois, France.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/APS.DFD.2021.GFM.V0078

Snakes are anguilliform swimmers. Although the hydrodynamics of anguilliform swimming can be predicted through idealized numerical models, they are yet to be observed in three dimensions. 

We used volumetric 3-component velocimetry (V3V) to capture the instantaneous 3D wake structure of freely swimming dice snakes (Natrix tessellata) and sunbeam snake (Xenopeltis unicolor).

These results are a first step towards the understanding of the efficiency of anguilliform swimming and will be compared to results for other species of aquatic snakes that have independently evolved an aquatic life-style. This may help future developments of  bio-inspired aquatic systems.