Olfactory sampling volume for pheromone capture by wing fanning of silkworm moth: a simulation-based study
Odours used by insects for foraging and mating are carried by the air. Insects induce airflows around them by flapping their wings, and the distribution of these airflows may strongly influence odour source localisation. The flightless silkworm moth, Bombyx mori , has been a prominent insect model f...
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Published in | Scientific reports Vol. 14; no. 1; pp. 17879 - 12 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
London
Nature Publishing Group UK
02.08.2024
Nature Publishing Group Nature Portfolio |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | Odours used by insects for foraging and mating are carried by the air. Insects induce airflows around them by flapping their wings, and the distribution of these airflows may strongly influence odour source localisation. The flightless silkworm moth,
Bombyx mori
, has been a prominent insect model for olfactory research. However, although there have been numerous studies on antenna morphology and its fluid dynamics, neurophysiology, and localisation algorithms, the airflow manipulation of the
B. mori
by fanning has not been thoroughly investigated. In this study, we performed computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analyses of flapping
B. mori
to analyse this mechanism in depth. A three-dimensional simulation using reconstructed wing kinematics was used to investigate the effects of
B. mori
fanning on locomotion and pheromone capture. The fanning of the
B. mori
was found to generate an aerodynamic force on the scale of its weight through an aerodynamic mechanism similar to that of flying insects. Our simulations further indicate that the
B. mori
guides particles from its anterior direction within the ~ 60° horizontally by wing fanning. Hence, if it detects pheromones during fanning, the pheromone can be concluded to originate from the direction the head is pointing. The anisotropy in the sampling volume enables the
B. mori
to orient to the pheromone plume direction. These results provide new insights into insect behaviour and offer design guidelines for robots for odour source localisation. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
ISSN: | 2045-2322 2045-2322 |
DOI: | 10.1038/s41598-024-67966-y |