Table of Contents
Are horizontal or vertical tails better?
Fish inherited that movement, for which a vertical tail is best. Marine mammals kept this movement, for which a horizontal tail is best.
What do whale tails do?
A whale’s tail is called its flukes. The flukes are used in swimming. Flukes are also used in lobtailing, an activity in which some whales stick their tail out of the water into the air, swing it around, and then slap it on the water’s surface. Flukes move up and down to propel the whale through the water.
Why do sharks have vertical fins?
These fins work like the vertical stabilizer wing on an airplane. They help the shark keep its balance as it moves through the water and they can be moved from side to side to turn the shark left and right. This fin arrangement gives sharks amazing maneuverability.
Do sharks have vertical or horizontal tails?
It seems to be a common theme that marine mammals have their tail fins horizontal to the plane of the water while sharks and other fish seem to have a vertical tail fin.
What is interesting about cetaceans tail flukes?
As with all the cetaceans, all visible traces of hind limbs have disappeared – the hind limbs have evolved into a powerful tail. The tail of the dolphin (everything behind the dorsal fin) is used for propulsion: it is therefore very muscular. The flukes feel like dense rubber to touch. …
What are tail flukes?
Fluke (tail), the lobes of the tail of a cetacean, such as dolphins or whales, ichthyosaurs, mosasaurs, plesiosaurs, and metriorhynchids.
What is the main difference between vertical and horizontal organizations?
The difference between horizontal and vertical organizations is that vertical organizations have a top-down management structure, while horizontal organizations have a flat structure that provides greater employee autonomy.
What are the difference between vertical and horizontal integration?
Horizontal integration is an expansion strategy adopted by a company that involves the acquisition of another company in the same business line. Vertical integration refers to an expansion strategy where one company takes control over one or more stages in the production or distribution of a product.
Why do dolphins and whales have horizontal flukes?
Dolphins and whales have vertebrae that flex up and down, so horizontal flukes enhance the way the tail beats the water.
Why does a fish have a vertical tail?
Fish inherited that movement, for which a vertical tail is best. Their distant land mammal descendants evolved to run with limbs underneath: an unstable gait allowing rapid direction changes. To extend the stride, their spine flexes up-and-down. Marine mammals kept this movement, for which a horizontal tail is best.
What is the difference between a shark’s tail fins and flukes?
One has vertical tail fins while the other has horizontal tail flukes… There is also a significant difference in how those two different orientations are used to provide mobility. A shark (and other fish) moves its tail (and spine, which the tail is an extension of) from side to side.
Why do whales and fish have the same spinal column?
Whales still have the same type of spinal column, though necessarily larger. And their tails move consistently up and down. Fish clearly evolved differently, with their spines undulating from side to side. Why that is, no one knows. But clearly, they did.