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Guershon M, Francos RM, Ayali A, Hatuka T. Locust behavior and city topology: A biodynamic approach for assessing urban flows. iScience 2024; 27:109922. [PMID: 38799584 PMCID: PMC11126941 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Revised: 04/28/2024] [Accepted: 05/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024] Open
Abstract
A city's economic growth and the inhabitants' wellbeing are highly affected by its topology and connecting networks, which, in turn, influence movement and flows in the city. Flow relates to how a city is developed, organized, managed, and built. The analysis of flow in cities is challenging but essential. In this study, the fields of urban design and animal science are combined, and a new approach for exploring the relationships between urban topology and physical flow is developed. Specifically, we establish an interdisciplinary methodology to evaluate mobility performance in various urban settings, utilizing experimental observations of the dynamic behavior of natural-biological agents, i.e., locusts, within physical city models. Our novel approach enriches the currently available toolbox by using living organisms as indicators for flow in physical city models. Our findings improve our understanding of the intricate flow interactions in urban settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moshe Guershon
- School of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- The Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | | | - Amir Ayali
- School of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Tali Hatuka
- Porter School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
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Krongauz DL, Ayali A, Kaminka GA. Vision-based collective motion: A locust-inspired reductionist model. PLoS Comput Biol 2024; 20:e1011796. [PMID: 38285716 PMCID: PMC10852344 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Revised: 02/08/2024] [Accepted: 01/03/2024] [Indexed: 01/31/2024] Open
Abstract
Naturally occurring collective motion is a fascinating phenomenon in which swarming individuals aggregate and coordinate their motion. Many theoretical models of swarming assume idealized, perfect perceptual capabilities, and ignore the underlying perception processes, particularly for agents relying on visual perception. Specifically, biological vision in many swarming animals, such as locusts, utilizes monocular non-stereoscopic vision, which prevents perfect acquisition of distances and velocities. Moreover, swarming peers can visually occlude each other, further introducing estimation errors. In this study, we explore necessary conditions for the emergence of ordered collective motion under restricted conditions, using non-stereoscopic, monocular vision. We present a model of vision-based collective motion for locust-like agents: elongated shape, omni-directional visual sensor parallel to the horizontal plane, and lacking stereoscopic depth perception. The model addresses (i) the non-stereoscopic estimation of distance and velocity, (ii) the presence of occlusions in the visual field. We consider and compare three strategies that an agent may use to interpret partially-occluded visual information at the cost of the computational complexity required for the visual perception processes. Computer-simulated experiments conducted in various geometrical environments (toroidal, corridor, and ring-shaped arenas) demonstrate that the models can result in an ordered or near-ordered state. At the same time, they differ in the rate at which order is achieved. Moreover, the results are sensitive to the elongation of the agents. Experiments in geometrically constrained environments reveal differences between the models and elucidate possible tradeoffs in using them to control swarming agents. These suggest avenues for further study in biology and robotics.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Amir Ayali
- School of Zoology and Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Israel
| | - Gal A. Kaminka
- Computer Science Department, Bar-Ilan Univeristy, Israel
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Bleichman I, Yadav P, Ayali A. Visual processing and collective motion-related decision-making in desert locusts. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20221862. [PMID: 36651041 PMCID: PMC9845972 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.1862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Collectively moving groups of animals rely on the decision-making of locally interacting individuals in order to maintain swarm cohesion. However, the complex and noisy visual environment poses a major challenge to the extraction and processing of relevant information. We addressed this challenge by studying swarming-related decision-making in desert locust last-instar nymphs. Controlled visual stimuli, in the form of random dot kinematograms, were presented to tethered locust nymphs in a trackball set-up, while monitoring movement trajectory and walking parameters. In a complementary set of experiments, the neurophysiological basis of the observed behavioural responses was explored. Our results suggest that locusts use filtering and discrimination upon encountering multiple stimuli simultaneously. Specifically, we show that locusts are sensitive to differences in speed at the individual conspecific level, and to movement coherence at the group level, and may use these to filter out non-relevant stimuli. The locusts also discriminate and assign different weights to different stimuli, with an observed interactive effect of stimulus size, relative abundance and motion direction. Our findings provide insights into the cognitive abilities of locusts in the domain of decision-making and visual-based collective motion, and support locusts as a model for investigating sensory-motor integration and motion-related decision-making in the intricate swarm environment.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Pratibha Yadav
- School of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, 6997801 Israel,Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, 6997801 Israel
| | - Amir Ayali
- School of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, 6997801 Israel,Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, 6997801 Israel
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Vernier C, Barthes N, Chapuis MP, Foucaud J, Huguenin J, Leménager N, Piou C. Faeces' odours attract gregarious locust hoppers. JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 143:104454. [PMID: 36343666 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2022.104454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2022] [Revised: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Collective motion is one of the most impressive common features of gregarious locusts: once formed, bands and swarms get moving for long distances. It was shown that visual perception of neighbours plays a key role in maintaining marching behaviour at a local scale. But at a larger scale, mechanisms underlying band cohesion are less understood. It was shown in several field studies that individuals separated from the band were able to get back to the group, even after being separated since a night. In this context, faeces' odours could be a possible indicator of the recent passage of a group. In this study, we tested if nymphs are attracted by faeces' odours and if this effect is modulated by the age of the faeces. To this end, we conducted individual olfactometric behavioural assays of 3rd instar hoppers of desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria, exposed to odours of 1 h-old and 24 h-old faeces. We also used Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) to identify odours' volatile organic compounds from faeces. The results of behavioural assays indicated a strong attractive effect of faeces, with no preference for one of the two faecal age classes. Nymphs spent significantly more time in the side of the olfactometer where the faeces' odours came from, and 72.7% of tested individuals chose this side first. We filtered and annotated 11 volatile organic compounds present in both fresh and old faeces in GC-MS analyses, including guaiacol and phenol, which are known to cause an aggregative effect on desert locusts. As the attractive effect lasted over 24 h, band's faeces could still have an attractive effect when individuals are separated from the band since one day. In this situation, latecomers individuals would be able to get back to the group by following the traces of their predecessors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camille Vernier
- CIRAD, UMR CBGP, F-34398 Montpellier, France; CBGP, Université de Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, IRD, Montpellier, France.
| | - Nicolas Barthes
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, UMR 5175, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, Université Paul Valéry Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, F-34293 Montpellier, France
| | - Marie-Pierre Chapuis
- CIRAD, UMR CBGP, F-34398 Montpellier, France; CBGP, Université de Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Julien Foucaud
- CBGP, Université de Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, IRD, Montpellier, France; INRAE, UMR CBGP, F-34398 Montpellier, France
| | - Joris Huguenin
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, UMR 5175, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, Université Paul Valéry Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, F-34293 Montpellier, France
| | - Nicolas Leménager
- CIRAD, UMR CBGP, F-34398 Montpellier, France; CBGP, Université de Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Cyril Piou
- CIRAD, UMR CBGP, F-34398 Montpellier, France; CBGP, Université de Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, IRD, Montpellier, France
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Amir M, Agmon N, Bruckstein AM. A Locust-Inspired Model of Collective Marching on Rings. ENTROPY 2022; 24:e24070918. [PMID: 35885140 PMCID: PMC9323757 DOI: 10.3390/e24070918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2022] [Revised: 06/25/2022] [Accepted: 06/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
We study the collective motion of autonomous mobile agents in a ringlike environment. The agents’ dynamics are inspired by known laboratory experiments on the dynamics of locust swarms. In these experiments, locusts placed at arbitrary locations and initial orientations on a ring-shaped arena are observed to eventually all march in the same direction. In this work we ask whether, and how fast, a similar phenomenon occurs in a stochastic swarm of simple locust-inspired agents. The agents are randomly initiated as marching either clockwise or counterclockwise on a discretized, wide ring-shaped region, which we subdivide into k concentric tracks of length n. Collisions cause agents to change their direction of motion. To avoid this, agents may decide to switch tracks to merge with platoons of agents marching in their direction. We prove that such agents must eventually converge to a local consensus about their direction of motion, meaning that all agents on each narrow track must eventually march in the same direction. We give asymptotic bounds for the expected time it takes for such convergence or “stabilization” to occur, which depends on the number of agents, the length of the tracks, and the number of tracks. We show that when agents also have a small probability of “erratic”, random track-jumping behavior, a global consensus on the direction of motion across all tracks will eventually be reached. Finally, we verify our theoretical findings in numerical simulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Amir
- Department of Computer Science, Technion—Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel;
- Correspondence:
| | - Noa Agmon
- Department of Computer Science, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan 5290002, Israel;
| | - Alfred M. Bruckstein
- Department of Computer Science, Technion—Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel;
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Couzin-Fuchs E, Ayali A. The social brain of 'non-eusocial' insects. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2021; 48:1-7. [PMID: 33933684 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2021.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2021] [Revised: 04/19/2021] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Decisions are seldom entirely devoid of social influence. Even in organisms that have traditionally been considered non-social, the social environment plays an important role in mediating behavior. Here we review the current knowledge regarding the neural basis of social behaviors in non-eusocial insects, with a particular focus on fruit flies, cockroaches and locusts. Each are shown to offer valuable, and complementary, insights into how social behavior is mediated at the neural level. The presented studies demonstrate that social cues, which are integrated in primary sensory areas, exert a considerable influence on behavior. Further studies with these models, and others, will provide important insights into the diversity of social behaviors, and into the way that these are encoded in dedicated brain and neuronal structures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Einat Couzin-Fuchs
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany; Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, 78464 Konstanz, Germany.
| | - Amir Ayali
- School of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, 6997801, Israel; Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, 6997801, Israel
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Mukherjee S, Singh RK, James M, Ray SS. Anomalous Diffusion and Lévy Walks Distinguish Active from Inertial Turbulence. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2021; 127:118001. [PMID: 34558935 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.127.118001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2021] [Accepted: 07/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Bacterial swarms display intriguing dynamical states like active turbulence. Now, using a hydrodynamic model, we show that such dense active suspensions manifest superdiffusion, via Lévy walks, which masquerades as a crossover from ballistic to diffusive scaling in measurements of mean-squared displacements, and is tied to the emergence of hitherto undetected oscillatory streaks in the flow. Thus, while laying the theoretical framework of an emergent advantageous strategy in the collective behavior of microorganisms, our Letter underlines the essential differences between active and inertial turbulence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siddhartha Mukherjee
- International Centre for Theoretical Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore 560089, India
| | - Rahul K Singh
- International Centre for Theoretical Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore 560089, India
| | | | - Samriddhi Sankar Ray
- International Centre for Theoretical Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore 560089, India
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