The "Dinosaur Eel"

Scientists looking to protect the soldier of the future are learning a lot from a relic of the past, according to a study of a primitive fish that could point to more effective ways of designing human body armour.

Polypterus senegalus, is a Bichir, a freshwater fish whose family tree can be traced back 96 million years and who still inhabits muddy pools in Africa. Unlike the great majority of fish today, it still sports the same full-body suit of armour that would have protected most fish millions of years ago--a throwback that helps explain its nickname of “the dinosaur eel."

It evolved the armour millions of years ago, when fearsome predators ruled the waters, and the light, multi-layered design of its scales have since remained unchanged and helped it survive for 96 million years. Little wonder then that the U.S. Army has funded a study to explore just how the ancient armour could be used for practical applications on the battlefield.

Using nanotechnological methods, a team of MIT scientists discovered that each of the dinosaur eel’s tough, mineralised scales is made up of four separate materials in layers around 100 millionths of a meter thick. The different materials, the geometry and thickness of each layer, the sequence of the layers and the junctions between them all contribute to a supremely efficient design that helps the fish survive a penetrating attack such as a bite.

By mimicking such a bite on a scale that had been surgically removed from an anaesthetized fish, scientists found that the armour kept the crack localized at the point of attack by forcing it to run in a circle around the penetration site, rather than spreading through the entire scale and leading to catastrophic failure.

The amazing discovery could lead not only to innovative, biologically-inspired systems to protect soldiers from shrapnel and explosions, but could also lead to the development of new materials to protect police officers from bullets and firefighters from heat and toxic chemicals; and to serve as new structural components for buildings, aircraft, vehicles, windshields and more.