Morphological determinants of bite force capacity in insects: a biomechanical analysis of polymorphic leaf-cutter ants
The extraordinary success of social insects is partially based on division of labour, i.e. individuals exclusively or preferentially perform specific tasks. Task preference may correlate with morphological adaptations so implying task specialization, but the extent of such specialization can be diff...
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Published in | Journal of the Royal Society interface Vol. 18; no. 182; p. 20210424 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
England
The Royal Society
08.09.2021
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Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | The extraordinary success of social insects is partially based on division of labour, i.e. individuals exclusively or preferentially perform specific tasks. Task preference may correlate with morphological adaptations so implying task specialization, but the extent of such specialization can be difficult to determine. Here, we demonstrate how the physical foundation of some tasks can be leveraged to quantitatively link morphology and performance. We study the allometry of bite force capacity in
leaf-cutter ants, polymorphic insects in which the mechanical processing of plant material is a key aspect of the behavioural portfolio. Through a morphometric analysis of tomographic scans, we show that the bite force capacity of the heaviest colony workers is twice as large as predicted by isometry. This disproportionate 'boost' is predominantly achieved through increased investment in muscle volume; geometrical parameters such as mechanical advantage, fibre length or pennation angle are likely constrained by the need to maintain a constant mandibular opening range. We analyse this preference for an increase in size-specific muscle volume and the adaptations in internal and external head anatomy required to accommodate it with simple geometric and physical models, so providing a quantitative understanding of the functional anatomy of the musculoskeletal bite apparatus in insects. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 Electronic supplementary material is available online at https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.5637065. |
ISSN: | 1742-5662 1742-5689 1742-5662 |
DOI: | 10.1098/rsif.2021.0424 |