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Did you know limpets (marine snails) can withstand >80kg of force? Imagine doing pull-ups using limpets! Ever wondered how do they attach? If you said suction, you're in for a surprise. A thread about my latest paper on limpet adhesion: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsob.200019.
For >100 years, scientists have debated how limpets attach so strongly: is it suction, sticky mucus, clamping, or viscous adhesion? North American species (Lottia) are known to alternate between suction and glue-like mucus. How about the European common limpet, Patella vulgata?
We found that patellid limpets do not generate large suction for attachment. Instead, when we analysed their pedal mucus (yes, I collected limpet 'slime'), we identified many proteins with similarities to known adhesive proteins from other marine inverts, like sea stars,
sea urchins, anemones, marine flatworms. Limpet adhesive mucus was more similar to temporary bio-adhesives (adhesive secretions) than permanent adhesives (e.g., adult mussels & barnacles). So patellid limpets secrete bio-adhesives beneath their feet to attach strongly!
This paper was >2.5yrs in the making, and was only possible with the help of fantastic collaborators from Belgium & Austria. Big cheers to EU COST action for funding my research visits to Belgium 
@CamZoology @ZoologyMuseum @NHM_London @royalsociety @Cambridge_Uni
@CamZoology @ZoologyMuseum @NHM_London @royalsociety @Cambridge_Uni
