Combining biomechanics and movement ecology of kangaroos and relatives

袋鼠和他们的亲戚在他们的身体形式，跳跃步态和事实上，增加速度并不增加能量成本是独一无二的。该项目旨在构建3D肌肉骨骼模型，以了解肌肉和肌腱如何相互作用，从而能够以更少的能量行驶更长的距离。此外，它将使用动物跟踪设备和机器学习工具来量化野外的运动。这个框架将提供新的见解如何能量，形态和栖息地塑造了这个独特的群体的进化。这可能会为未来的一系列生态，生理和保护研究打开大门，并为高效的机器人和辅助设备提供生物学灵感。

Kangaroos and their relatives are unique in their body form, hopping gait and by the fact that increased speed does not come at an increased energetic cost. This project aims to build 3D musculoskeletal models to understand how muscles and tendons interact, enabling greater distances to be travelled using less energy. Further, it will use animal tracking devices and machine-learning tools to quantify movements in the wild. This framework will provide novel insights into how energetics, morphology, and habitat have shaped the evolution of this unique group. This may open doors to a range of future ecological, physiological, and conservation studies and provide biological inspiration for energetically efficient robotic and assistive devices.