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How do squid use jets of water to move?
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Locomotion
These birds largely reside in coastal areas of North America, although some populations live in the continent's interior along large rivers.
Squids utilize a highly efficient form of jet propulsion for locomotion, which relies on their specialized mantle and funnel.1
The process functions through the following steps:
- Intake: The squid relaxes its circular mantle muscles, causing the mantle to expand and draw water into the mantle cavity. In oceanic squids, a nonreturn valve prevents water from entering incorrectly through the funnel.1
- Compression: When the mantle contracts, the aperture closes via locking mechanisms and anterior ring muscle contraction, sealing the cavity.1
- Expulsion: The rapid, simultaneous contraction of the circular muscles forces the water out through the funnel. This jet of water propels the squid in the direction opposite to where the funnel is pointed.12
Because the funnel is a flexible tube, it acts like a jet nozzle that can be turned in any direction, providing the squid with significant agility and steering control. While this mechanism enables quick forward and backward movements, squids also use fins for slower swimming or hovering.1