Fig. 6. The effects of discrete kinematic variables on the force exerted on the prey in a representative bass strike, illustrated using the force model. Firstly, the force model was first run with the observed kinematics, returning the expected force as a function of time (A). Peak force was recorded and the maximal gape was than changed to fit the mean bluegill gape, force was recalculated (B) and peak force recorded. Next, we changed strike initiation distance to increase strike efficiency (C) and finally we changed mouth displacement speed to fit the mean bluegill speed (D). The procedure (A–D) was repeated for each strike and peak force was recorded following each change. Note that changes to kinematics are cumulative so that each model retains the changes made previously. Each change to kinematics appears in bold font when first made.