Sensory Control of Abdomen Posture in Flying Locusts*

Open Access
Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Flying locusts use their abdomens as rudders when executing a variety of flight manoeuvres. In the previous paper (Camhi, 1970) I described the lateral deflexions of the abdomen, which locusts presumably use in yaw correction. The sensory cue evoking this response is a change in the direction of the relative wind, monitored by the cephalic wind receptor hairs. The response appears in tethered locusts only while the wings are flapping in flight, suggesting that the activation of the flight mechanisms closes a neuronal switch, which permits wind-direction information from the cephalic hairs to be processed and translated into an abdominal movement.

This publication has 7 references indexed in Scilit: