Lepidology

The Lepidologie ( dandruff customer ) is a specialized field of Ichthyology (ichthyology) and deals with the structure and function of the scales .

Research areas

Lepidology deals with various questions of zoology and physiology, which can be answered by researching the scales. For most fish species, for example, the age of the fish can be determined using growth rings.

The arrangement of the scales in fast-swimming sharks reduces the turbulent wall friction when swimming, which increases their speed of movement and saves energy when swimming. The finely grooved shark skin, which is covered with placoid scales , therefore served flow researchers in wind tunnel tests as a model for the optimization of low-resistance surfaces that can be used on commercial aircraft. This is a frequently cited example in the field of bionics .