This 1997 book reviews what is known about the biology of suspension feeders in relation to their flow environment.This book is about those animals found on the sea floor that live by filtering microscopic particles carried to them by water currents. Its purpose is to review what is known about the biology of suspension feeders in relation to their flow environment. The book includes the larval biology, physiology, ethology and ecology of suspension feeders interacting with water flow. It is the first book to provide a comprehensive overview of their hydrodynamics and benthic biology from the biological viewpoint.This book is about those animals found on the sea floor that live by filtering microscopic particles carried to them by water currents. Its purpose is to review what is known about the biology of suspension feeders in relation to their flow environment. The book includes the larval biology, physiology, ethology and ecology of suspension feeders interacting with water flow. It is the first book to provide a comprehensive overview of their hydrodynamics and benthic biology from the biological viewpoint.This book is about those animals found on the sea floor that live by filtering microscopic particles carried by water currents. Its purpose is to review what is known about the biology of suspension feeders in relation to their flow environment. The book includes the larval biology, physiology, ethology, and ecology of suspension feeders interacting with water flow. It will be of value to marine scientists beginning research in the new, interdisciplinary field of hydrodynamics and benthic biology, and it is the first attempt to provide a comprehensive overview of this synthesis from the biological viewpoint.Acknowledgments; 1. Introduction; 2. Methods of study; 3. Dispersal and settlement; 4. Flow and the physiology of filtration; 5. Mechanisms of seston capture; 6. Behavioral responses to flow; 7. Benthic populations and flow; 8. Ecosystems and flow; 9. FuturelS}