Premium
Fatigue fracture of mother‐of‐pearl and its significance for predatory techniques
Author(s) -
Currey J. D.,
Brear K.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
journal of zoology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.915
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1469-7998
pISSN - 0952-8369
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-7998.1984.tb02348.x
Subject(s) - pearl , biology , predator , fracture (geology) , pearl oyster , shell (structure) , predation , materials science , composite material , ecology , philosophy , paleontology , theology
Specimens of nacre from the pearl oyster Pinctada margaritifera were loaded in bending to various fractions of the load needed to cause fracture. For a small number of cycles, less than about 1000, no changes in compliance or strength were found if the load was less than about 60% of the load necessary to cause failure. Above this fraction the compliance increased, the strength usually decreased but occasionally increased. We conclude that, because the loading of a shell by a predator is likely to be far less controlled than loading by a machine, causing a shell to break by fatigue fracture is unlikely to be a tactic employed by a predator, though it may happen fortuitously.