Plankton’s perception of signals in a turbulent environment

Aquatic micro-organisms often depend on detecting signals caused by motions in the surrounding flow. The antennae and setae of plankton are considered as examples of small fibers that here serve to detect variations in the local fluid velocities. It is argued that the noise induced by the turbulent environment can disturb the signals originating from moving prey or predators. At times, the turbulent noise can be mistaken to represent a signal, motivating erratic attack or escape responses. The present review addresses the latter problem. The analysis is kept on a level sufficiently simple to let the results have practical applicability, while on the other hand, the basic elements of the problem are retained. More generally, the results can be applied for estimating some of the effects of turbulence on small rigid fibers being transported by a turbulent flow. Known results are supplemented by new findings, extending the parameter range.