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Treidel LA, Deem KD, Salcedo MK, Dickinson MH, Bruce HS, Darveau CA, Dickerson BH, Ellers O, Glass JR, Gordon CM, Harrison JF, Hedrick TL, Johnson MG, Lebenzon JE, Marden JH, Niitepõld K, Sane SP, Sponberg S, Talal S, Williams CM, Wold ES. Insect Flight: State of the Field and Future Directions. Integr Comp Biol 2024; 64:icae106. [PMID: 38982327 PMCID: PMC11406162 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icae106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/11/2024] Open
Abstract
The evolution of flight in an early winged insect ancestral lineage is recognized as a key adaptation explaining the unparalleled success and diversification of insects. Subsequent transitions and modifications to flight machinery, including secondary reductions and losses, also play a central role in shaping the impacts of insects on broadscale geographic and ecological processes and patterns in the present and future. Given the importance of insect flight, there has been a centuries-long history of research and debate on the evolutionary origins and biological mechanisms of flight. Here, we revisit this history from an interdisciplinary perspective, discussing recent discoveries regarding the developmental origins, physiology, biomechanics, and neurobiology and sensory control of flight in a diverse set of insect models. We also identify major outstanding questions yet to be addressed and provide recommendations for overcoming current methodological challenges faced when studying insect flight, which will allow the field to continue to move forward in new and exciting directions. By integrating mechanistic work into ecological and evolutionary contexts, we hope that this synthesis promotes and stimulates new interdisciplinary research efforts necessary to close the many existing gaps about the causes and consequences of insect flight evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa A Treidel
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Lincoln NE, 68588, USA
| | - Kevin D Deem
- Department of Biology, University of Rochester, Rochester NY, 14627, USA
| | - Mary K Salcedo
- Department of Biological and Environmental Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca NY, 14853, USA
| | - Michael H Dickinson
- Department of Bioengineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena CA 91125, USA
| | | | - Charles-A Darveau
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa Ontario, K1N 6N5, Canada
| | - Bradley H Dickerson
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Olaf Ellers
- Biology Department, Bowdoin College, Brunswick, ME 04011, USA
| | - Jordan R Glass
- Department of Zoology & Physiology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82070, USA
| | - Caleb M Gordon
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8109, USA
| | - Jon F Harrison
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-4501, USA
| | - Tyson L Hedrick
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Meredith G Johnson
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-4501, USA
| | - Jacqueline E Lebenzon
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley CA, 94720, USA
| | - James H Marden
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16803, USA
| | | | - Sanjay P Sane
- National Center for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore 560065 India
| | - Simon Sponberg
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
| | - Stav Talal
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-4501, USA
| | - Caroline M Williams
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley CA, 94720, USA
| | - Ethan S Wold
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
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2
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Ling TC, Phokasem P, Sinpoo C, Chantawannakul P, Khongphinitbunjong K, Disayathanoowat T. Tropilaelaps mercedesae Infestation Is Correlated with Injury Numbers on the Brood and the Population Size of Honey Bee Apis mellifera. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:ani13081318. [PMID: 37106881 PMCID: PMC10135255 DOI: 10.3390/ani13081318] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Revised: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 04/10/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Tropilaelaps mercedesae, one of the most devastating parasitic mites of honey bee Apis mellifera hosts, is a major threat to honey products by causing severe damage to honey bee colonies. Here, we recorded injury numbers caused by T. mercedesae to different body parts of the larval, pupal, and crippled adult stages of honey bee A. mellifera. We evaluated the relationship between infestation rate and injury numbers per bee for both larvae and pupae. We also noted the total bee numbers per beehive and examined the relationship between the infestation rate and population size. T. mercedesae infested all developmental stages of honey bees, with the highest injury numbers in the abdomens of bee pupae and the antennas of crippled adult bees. Although larvae received more injury numbers than pupae, both infestation rate and injury numbers decreased as the larval stage progressed to the pupal stage. The infestation rate increased as the population size per beehive decreased. This study provided new perspectives to the understanding of changes in the effects of T. mercedesae infestations on different developmental stages of honey bees. It also showed useful baseline information for screening honey bee stock that might have high defensive behaviors against mite infestation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tial C Ling
- Bee Protection Laboratory, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Patcharin Phokasem
- Bee Protection Laboratory, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Chainarong Sinpoo
- Bee Protection Laboratory, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Panuwan Chantawannakul
- Bee Protection Laboratory, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | | | - Terd Disayathanoowat
- Bee Protection Laboratory, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
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3
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Shah AA, Hotaling S, Lapsansky AB, Malison RL, Birrell JH, Keeley T, Giersch JJ, Tronstad LM, Woods HA. Warming undermines emergence success in a threatened alpine stonefly: A multi‐trait perspective on vulnerability to climate change. Funct Ecol 2023. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.14284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/19/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Alisha A. Shah
- Division of Biological Sciences University of Montana Missoula Montana USA
- W.K. Kellogg Biological Station, Department of Integrative Biology Michigan State University Hickory Corners Michigan USA
| | - Scott Hotaling
- School of Biological Sciences Washington State University Pullman Washington USA
- Department of Watershed Sciences Utah State University Logan Utah USA
| | - Anthony B. Lapsansky
- Division of Biological Sciences University of Montana Missoula Montana USA
- Department of Zoology University of British Columbia Vancouver British Columbia Canada
| | - Rachel L. Malison
- Flathead Lake Biological Station University of Montana Missoula Montana USA
| | - Jackson H. Birrell
- Division of Biological Sciences University of Montana Missoula Montana USA
| | - Tylor Keeley
- Division of Biological Sciences University of Montana Missoula Montana USA
| | - J. Joseph Giersch
- Flathead Lake Biological Station University of Montana Missoula Montana USA
| | - Lusha M. Tronstad
- Wyoming Natural Diversity Database University of Wyoming Laramie Wyoming USA
| | - H. Arthur Woods
- Division of Biological Sciences University of Montana Missoula Montana USA
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4
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Abstract
Honeybees display a unique biolocomotion strategy at the air-water interface. When water's adhesive force traps them on the surface, their wetted wings lose ability to generate aerodynamic thrust. However, they adequately locomote, reaching a speed up to 3 body lengths·s-1 Honeybees use their wetted wings as hydrofoils for their water surface propulsion. Their locomotion imparts hydrodynamic momentum to the surrounding water in the form of asymmetric waves and a deeper water jet stream, generating ∼20-μN average thrust. The wing kinematics show that the wing's stroke plane is skewed, and the wing supinates and pronates during its power and recovery strokes, respectively. The flow under a mechanical model wing mimicking the motion of a bee's wing further shows that nonzero net horizontal momentum is imparted to the water, demonstrating net thrust. Moreover, a periodic acceleration and deceleration of water are observed, which provides additional forward movement by "recoil locomotion." Their water surface locomotion by hydrofoiling is kinematically and dynamically distinct from surface skimming [J. H. Marden, M. G. Kramer, Science 266, 427-430 (1994)], water walking [J. W. M. Bush, D. L. Hu, Annu. Rev. Fluid Mech. 38, 339-369 (2006)], and drag-based propulsion [J. Voise, J. Casas, J. R. Soc. Interface 7, 343-352 (2010)]. It is postulated that the ability to self-propel on a water surface may increase the water-foraging honeybee's survival chances when they fall on the water.
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Alexander DE. A century and a half of research on the evolution of insect flight. ARTHROPOD STRUCTURE & DEVELOPMENT 2018; 47:322-327. [PMID: 29169955 DOI: 10.1016/j.asd.2017.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2017] [Revised: 11/07/2017] [Accepted: 11/18/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
The gill and paranotal lobe theories of insect wing evolution were both proposed in the 1870s. For most of the 20th century, the paranotal lobe theory was more widely accepted, probably due to the fundamentally terrestrial tracheal respiratory system; in the 1970s, some researchers advocated for an elaborated gill ("pleural appendage") theory. Lacking transition fossils, neither theory could be definitively rejected. Winged insects are abundant in the fossil record from the mid-Carboniferous, but insect fossils are vanishingly rare earlier, and all earlier fossils are from primitively wingless insects. The enigmatic, isolated mandibles of Rhyniognatha (early Devonian) hint that pterygotes may have been present much earlier, but the question remains open. In the late 20th century, researchers used models to study the interaction of body and protowing size on solar warming and gliding abilities, and stability and glide effectiveness of many tiny adjustable winglets versus a single, large pair of immobile winglets. Living stoneflies inspired the surface-skimming theory, which provides a mechanism to bridge between aquatic gills and flapping wings. The serendipitously discovered phenomenon of directed aerial descent suggests a likely route to the early origin of insect flight. It provides a biomechanically feasible sequence from guided falls to fully-powered flight.
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Affiliation(s)
- David E Alexander
- University of Kansas, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, 1200 Sunnyside Avenue, Rm. 2041 Lawrence, KS 66045-7534, USA.
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Kwak B, Bae J. Locomotion of arthropods in aquatic environment and their applications in robotics. BIOINSPIRATION & BIOMIMETICS 2018; 13:041002. [PMID: 29508773 DOI: 10.1088/1748-3190/aab460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Many bio-inspired robots have been developed so far after careful investigation of animals' locomotion. To successfully apply the locomotion of natural counterparts to robots for efficient and improved mobility, it is essential to understand their principles. Although a lot of research has studied either animals' locomotion or bio-inspired robots, there have only been a few attempts to broadly review both of them in a single article. Among the millions of animal species, this article reviewed various forms of aquatic locomotion in arthropods including relevant bio-inspired robots. Despite some previous robotics research inspired by aquatic arthropods, we found that many less-investigated or even unexplored areas are still present. Therefore, this article has been prepared to identify what types of new robotics research can be carried out after drawing inspiration from the aquatic locomotion of arthropods and to provide fruitful insights that may lead us to develop an agile and efficient aquatic robot.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bokeon Kwak
- Bio-Robotics and Control (BiRC) Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, UNIST, Ulsan, Republic of Korea
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7
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Mukundarajan H, Bardon TC, Kim DH, Prakash M. Surface tension dominates insect flight on fluid interfaces. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017; 219:752-66. [PMID: 26936640 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.127829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Flight on the 2D air-water interface, with body weight supported by surface tension, is a unique locomotion strategy well adapted for the environmental niche on the surface of water. Although previously described in aquatic insects like stoneflies, the biomechanics of interfacial flight has never been analysed. Here, we report interfacial flight as an adapted behaviour in waterlily beetles (Galerucella nymphaeae) which are also dexterous airborne fliers. We present the first quantitative biomechanical model of interfacial flight in insects, uncovering an intricate interplay of capillary, aerodynamic and neuromuscular forces. We show that waterlily beetles use their tarsal claws to attach themselves to the interface, via a fluid contact line pinned at the claw. We investigate the kinematics of interfacial flight trajectories using high-speed imaging and construct a mathematical model describing the flight dynamics. Our results show that non-linear surface tension forces make interfacial flight energetically expensive compared with airborne flight at the relatively high speeds characteristic of waterlily beetles, and cause chaotic dynamics to arise naturally in these regimes. We identify the crucial roles of capillary-gravity wave drag and oscillatory surface tension forces which dominate interfacial flight, showing that the air-water interface presents a radically modified force landscape for flapping wing flight compared with air.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Dong Hyun Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Manu Prakash
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
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8
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Peters JM, Gravish N, Combes SA. Wings as impellers: Honey bees co-opt flight system to induce nest ventilation and disperse pheromones. J Exp Biol 2017; 220:2203-2209. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.149476] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2016] [Accepted: 03/28/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Honey bees (Apis mellifera) are remarkable fliers that regularly carry heavy loads of nectar and pollen, supported by a flight system – the wings, thorax and flight muscles - that one might assume is optimized for aerial locomotion. However, honey bees also use this system to perform other crucial tasks that are unrelated to flight. When ventilating the nest, bees grip the surface of the comb or nest entrance and fan their wings to drive airflow through the nest, and a similar wing-fanning behavior is used to disperse volatile pheromones from the Nasonov gland. In order to understand how the physical demands of these impeller-like behaviors differ from those of flight, we quantified the flapping kinematics and compared the frequency, amplitude and stroke plane angle during these non-flight behaviors to values reported for hovering honey bees. We also used a particle-based flow visualization technique to determine the direction and speed of airflow generated by a bee performing Nasonov scenting behavior. We found that ventilatory fanning behavior is kinematically distinct from both flight and scenting behavior. Both impeller-like behaviors drive flow parallel to the surface to which the bees are clinging, at typical speeds of just under 1 m/s. We observed that the wings of fanning and scenting bees frequently contact the ground during the ventral stroke reversal, which may lead to wing wear. Finally, we observed that bees performing Nasonov scenting behavior sometimes display “clap-and-fling” motions, in which the wings contact each other during the dorsal stroke reversal and fling apart at the start of the downstroke. We conclude that the wings and flight motor of honey bees comprise a multifunctional system, which may be subject to competing selective pressures due to its frequent use as both a propeller and as an impeller.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob M. Peters
- OEB, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
| | - Nick Gravish
- OEB, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
- SEAS, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
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9
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Haug JT, Haug C, Garwood RJ. Evolution of insect wings and development - new details from Palaeozoic nymphs. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2014; 91:53-69. [PMID: 25400084 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2014] [Revised: 09/22/2014] [Accepted: 10/15/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The nymphal stages of Palaeozoic insects differ significantly in morphology from those of their modern counterparts. Morphological details for some previously reported species have recently been called into question. Palaeozoic insect nymphs are important, however - their study could provide key insights into the evolution of wings, and complete metamorphosis. Here we review past work on these topics and juvenile insects in the fossil record, and then present both novel and previously described nymphs, documented using new imaging methods. Our results demonstrate that some Carboniferous nymphs - those of Palaeodictyopteroidea - possessed movable wing pads and appear to have been able to perform simple flapping flight. It remains unclear whether this feature is ancestral for Pterygota or an autapomorphy of Palaeodictyopteroidea. Further characters of nymphal development which were probably in the ground pattern of Pterygota can be reconstructed. Wing development was very gradual (archimetaboly). Wing pads did not protrude from the tergum postero-laterally as in most modern nymphs, but laterally, and had well-developed venation. The modern orientation of wing pads and the delay of wing development into later developmental stages (condensation) appears to have evolved several times independently within Pterygota: in Ephemeroptera, Odonatoptera, Eumetabola, and probably several times within Polyneoptera. Selective pressure appears to have favoured a more pronounced metamorphosis between the last nymphal and adult stage, ultimately reducing exploitation competition between the two. We caution, however, that the results presented herein remain preliminary, and the reconstructed evolutionary scenario contains gaps and uncertainties. Additional comparative data need to be collected. The present study is thus seen as a starting point for this enterprise.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joachim T Haug
- Functional Morphology, Department of Biology II, GeoBio-Center, LMU Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2, 82152, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Carolin Haug
- Functional Morphology, Department of Biology II, GeoBio-Center, LMU Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2, 82152, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Russell J Garwood
- The Manchester X-Ray Imaging Facility, School of Materials, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M139PL, U.K.,School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M139PL, U.K
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10
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Yu-Han Q, Hai-Yan W, Xiao-Yu J, Wei-Wei Y, Yu-Zhou D. Mitochondrial genome of the stonefly Kamimuria wangi (Plecoptera: Perlidae) and phylogenetic position of plecoptera based on mitogenomes. PLoS One 2014; 9:e86328. [PMID: 24466028 PMCID: PMC3900512 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0086328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2013] [Accepted: 12/09/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
This study determined the mitochondrial genome sequence of the stonefly, Kamimuria wangi. In order to investigate the relatedness of stonefly to other members of Neoptera, a phylogenetic analysis was undertaken based on 13 protein-coding genes of mitochondrial genomes in 13 representative insects. The mitochondrial genome of the stonefly is a circular molecule consisting of 16,179 nucleotides and contains the 37 genes typically found in other insects. A 10-bp poly-T stretch was observed in the A+T-rich region of the K. wangi mitochondrial genome. Downstream of the poly-T stretch, two regions were located with potential ability to form stem-loop structures; these were designated stem-loop 1 (positions 15848-15651) and stem-loop 2 (15965-15998). The arrangement of genes and nucleotide composition of the K. wangi mitogenome are similar to those in Pteronarcys princeps, suggesting a conserved genome evolution within the Plecoptera. Phylogenetic analysis using maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference of 13 protein-coding genes supported a novel relationship between the Plecoptera and Ephemeroptera. The results contradict the existence of a monophyletic Plectoptera and Plecoptera as sister taxa to Embiidina, and thus requires further analyses with additional mitogenome sampling at the base of the Neoptera.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Yu-Han
- School of Horticulture and Plant Protection and Institute of Applied Entomology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China
- College of Forestry, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming, Yunnan, China
| | - Wu Hai-Yan
- School of Horticulture and Plant Protection and Institute of Applied Entomology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China
| | - Ji Xiao-Yu
- School of Horticulture and Plant Protection and Institute of Applied Entomology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China
| | - Yu Wei-Wei
- School of Horticulture and Plant Protection and Institute of Applied Entomology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China
| | - Du Yu-Zhou
- School of Horticulture and Plant Protection and Institute of Applied Entomology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China
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11
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Abstract
AbstractAnimal migration is often defined in terms appropriate only to the ‘to-and-fro’ movements of large, charismatic (and often vertebrate) species. However, like other important biological processes, the definition should apply over as broad a taxonomic range as possible in order to be intellectually satisfying. Here we illustrate the process of migration in insects and other terrestrial arthropods (e.g. arachnids, myriapods, and non-insect hexapods) but provide a different perspective by excluding the ‘typical’ mode of migration in insects, i.e. flapping flight. Instead, we review non-volant migratory movements, including: aerial migration by wingless species, pedestrian and waterborne migration, and phoresy. This reveals some fascinating and sometimes bizarre morphological and behavioural adaptations to facilitate movement. We also outline some innovative modelling approaches exploring the interactions between atmospheric transport processes and biological factors affecting the ‘dispersal kernels’ of wingless arthropods
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12
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Marden JH. REPLY TO “COMMENT ON MARDEN (2013) REGARDING THE INTERPRETATION OF THE EARLIEST TRACE FOSSIL OF A WINGED INSECT”. Evolution 2013; 67:2150-3. [DOI: 10.1111/evo.12093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2013] [Accepted: 02/13/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- James H. Marden
- Department of Biology; Pennsylvania State University; University Park Pennsylvania 16802
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13
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Marden JH. Reanalysis and experimental evidence indicate that the earliest trace fossil of a winged insect was a surface-skimming neopteran. Evolution 2012; 67:274-80. [PMID: 23289577 DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2012.01743.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
A recent description and analysis of an imprint fossil from the Carboniferous concluded that it was made by a mayfly landing in sediment at the edge of water. Here, I reanalyze that trace fossil and supply experimental evidence regarding wing traces and behavior. The thorax of the trace maker lacked structures characteristic of mayflies, but closely matches a modern neopteran insect family (Taeniopterygidae, Plecoptera) little changed from Early Permian fossils. Edges of the folded wings of live Taeniopteryx leave marks on sediment closely matching marks in the trace fossil. Faint marks lateral to and beyond the reach of meso- and metathoracic legs match the location where wings of surface-skimming Taeniopteryx stoneflies lightly touch the sediment when these insects skim onto wet ground at shorelines. Dimensions of the thorax of the trace indicate relatively weak flight ability compared to fossils from the Early Permian, making doubtful the hypothesis that the trace maker was flight capable. Ultimately, this fossil best fits a scenario in which a neopteran insect skimmed across the surface of water, then folded its wings. Surface skimming as a precursor to the evolution of flight in insects is supported by this fossil evidence of skimming behavior in a Carboniferous insect.
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Affiliation(s)
- James H Marden
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
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14
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Hadrys H, Simon S, Kaune B, Schmitt O, Schöner A, Jakob W, Schierwater B. Isolation of Hox cluster genes from insects reveals an accelerated sequence evolution rate. PLoS One 2012; 7:e34682. [PMID: 22685537 PMCID: PMC3369913 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0034682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2012] [Accepted: 03/08/2012] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Among gene families it is the Hox genes and among metazoan animals it is the insects (Hexapoda) that have attracted particular attention for studying the evolution of development. Surprisingly though, no Hox genes have been isolated from 26 out of 35 insect orders yet, and the existing sequences derive mainly from only two orders (61% from Hymenoptera and 22% from Diptera). We have designed insect specific primers and isolated 37 new partial homeobox sequences of Hox cluster genes (lab, pb, Hox3, ftz, Antp, Scr, abd-a, Abd-B, Dfd, and Ubx) from six insect orders, which are crucial to insect phylogenetics. These new gene sequences provide a first step towards comparative Hox gene studies in insects. Furthermore, comparative distance analyses of homeobox sequences reveal a correlation between gene divergence rate and species radiation success with insects showing the highest rate of homeobox sequence evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heike Hadrys
- ITZ, Division of Ecology and Evolution, Stiftung Tieraerztliche Hochschule Hannover, Hannover, Germany.
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15
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Late Carboniferous paleoichnology reveals the oldest full-body impression of a flying insect. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2011; 108:6515-9. [PMID: 21464315 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1015948108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Insects were the first animals to evolve powered flight and did so perhaps 90 million years before the first flight among vertebrates. However, the earliest fossil record of flying insect lineages (Pterygota) is poor, with scant indirect evidence from the Devonian and a nearly complete dearth of material from the Early Carboniferous. By the Late Carboniferous a diversity of flying lineages is known, mostly from isolated wings but without true insights into the paleoethology of these taxa. Here, we report evidence of a full-body impression of a flying insect from the Late Carboniferous Wamsutta Formation of Massachusetts, representing the oldest trace fossil of Pterygota. Through ethological and morphological analysis, the trace fossil provides evidence that its maker was a flying insect and probably was representative of a stem-group lineage of mayflies. The nature of this current full-body impression somewhat blurs distinctions between the systematics of traces and trace makers, thus adding to the debate surrounding ichnotaxonomy for traces with well-associated trace makers.
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16
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Dudley R, Yanoviak SP. Animal aloft: the origins of aerial behavior and flight. Integr Comp Biol 2011; 51:926-36. [PMID: 21558180 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icr002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Diverse taxa of animals exhibit remarkable aerial capacities, including jumping, mid-air righting, parachuting, gliding, landing, controlled maneuvers, and flapping flight. The origin of flapping wings in hexapods and in 3 separate lineages of vertebrates (pterosaurs, bats, and birds) greatly facilitated subsequent diversification of lineages, but both the paleobiological context and the possible selective pressures for the evolution of wings remain contentious. Larvae of various arboreal hemimetabolous insects, as well as many adult canopy ants, demonstrate the capacity for directed aerial descent in the absence of wings. Aerial control in the ancestrally wingless archaeognathans suggests that flight behavior preceded the origins of wings in hexapods. In evolutionary terms, the use of winglets and partial wings to effect aerial righting and maneuvers could select for enhanced appendicular motions, and ultimately lead to powered flight. Flight behaviors that involve neither flapping nor wings are likely to be much more widespread than is currently recognized. Further characterization of the sensory and biomechanical mechanisms used by these aerially capable taxa can potentially assist in reconstruction of ancestral winged morphologies and facilitate our understanding of the origins of flight.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Dudley
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
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Lin CP, Chen MY, Huang JP. The complete mitochondrial genome and phylogenomics of a damselfly, Euphaea formosa support a basal Odonata within the Pterygota. Gene 2010; 468:20-9. [PMID: 20699111 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2010.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2010] [Revised: 08/03/2010] [Accepted: 08/03/2010] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
This study determined the first complete mitochondrial genome of a damselfly, Euphaea formosa (Insecta: Odonata: Zygoptera), and reconstructed a phylogeny based on thirteen protein-coding genes of mitochondrial genomes in twenty-five representative hexapods to examine the relationships among the basal Pterygota. The damselfly's mitochondrial genome is a circular molecule of 15,700bp long, and contains the entire set of thirty-seven genes typically found in insects. The gene arrangement, nucleotide composition, and codon usage pattern of the mitochondrial genome are similar across the three odonate species, suggesting a conserved genome evolution within the Odonata. The presence of the intergenic spacer s5 likely represents a synapomorphy for the dragonflies (Anisoptera). Maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood, and Bayesian analyses of both nucleotide and amino acid sequences cannot support the three existing phylogenetic hypotheses of the basal Pterygota (Palaeoptera, Metapterygota, and Chiastomyaria). In contrast, the phylogenetic results indicate an alternative hypothesis of a strongly supported basal Odonata and a sister relationship of the Ephemeroptera and Plecoptera. The unexpected sister Ephemeroptera+Plecoptera clade, which contradicts with the widely accepted hypothesis of a monophyletic Neoptera, requires further analyses with additional mitochondrial genome sampling at the base of the Neoptera.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chung-Ping Lin
- Department of Life Science, Tunghai University, Taichung, Taiwan.
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Watson GS, Cribb BW, Watson JA. How micro/nanoarchitecture facilitates anti-wetting: an elegant hierarchical design on the termite wing. ACS NANO 2010; 4:129-36. [PMID: 20099910 DOI: 10.1021/nn900869b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
The termite is an insect which is a weak flier, has a large wing area in relation to its body mass, and many species typically fly during rain or storm periods. Water droplets placed on these insects' wings will spontaneously roll off the surface. Here we show how the intricate hierarchical array design of these insect wings achieves anti-wetting properties with water bodies of various sizes by reducing contact area and thus adhesion. To repel large droplets, the termite uses an array of hairs with a specially designed nanoarchitecture, which we demonstrate is critical for this function. By coating single hairs with a polymer of varying thicknesses (with a similar hydrophobicity to insect cuticle), we demonstrate that hairs of the same chemistry and with the complete nanoarchitecture show the greatest resistance to penetrating water bodies. The wings also consist of an underlying non-wetting membrane substructure comprising an array of star-shaped microstructures which minimize interaction with micro-sized droplets of water. The sophisticated micro/nanostructured hierarchy on the termite wing membrane not only results in non-wetting at different length scales but also demonstrates a design for weight and material minimization while achieving this state. Elucidating the function of such structures has implications for understanding insect biology and the evolution of wings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory S Watson
- School of Pharmacy and Molecular Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia.
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Ramos GC, Vaz NM, Saalfeld K. Wings for Flying, Lymphocytes for Defense: Spandrels, Exaptation and Specific Immunity. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2006. [DOI: 10.1159/000095881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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MARDEN JAMESH, THOMAS MICHAELA. Rowing locomotion by a stonefly that possesses the ancestral pterygote condition of co-occurring wings and abdominal gills. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2003. [DOI: 10.1046/j.1095-8312.2003.00192.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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Abstract
Insects have evolved sophisticated fight control mechanisms permitting a remarkable range of manoeuvres. Here, I present a qualitative analysis of insect flight control from the perspective of flight mechanics, drawing upon both the neurophysiology and biomechanics literatures. The current literature does not permit a formal, quantitative analysis of flight control, because the aerodynamic force systems that biologists have measured have rarely been complete and the position of the centre of gravity has only been recorded in a few studies. Treating the two best-known insect orders (Diptera and Orthoptera) separately from other insects, I discuss the control mechanisms of different insects in detail. Recent experimental studies suggest that the helicopter model of flight control proposed for Drosophila spp. may be better thought of as a facultative strategy for flight control, rather than the fixed (albeit selected) constraint that it is usually interpreted to be. On the other hand, the so-called 'constant-lift reaction' of locusts appears not to be a reflex for maintaining constant lift at varying angles of attack, as is usually assumed, but rather a mechanism to restore the insect to pitch equilibrium following a disturbance. Differences in the kinematic control mechanisms used by the various insect orders are related to differences in the arrangement of the wings, the construction of the flight motor and the unsteady mechanisms of lift production that are used. Since the evolution of insect flight control is likely to have paralleled the evolutionary refinement of these unsteady aerodynamic mechanisms, taxonomic differences in the kinematics of control could provide an assay of the relative importance of different unsteady mechanisms. Although the control kinematics vary widely between orders, the number of degrees of freedom that different insects can control will always be limited by the number of independent control inputs that they use. Control of the moments about all three axes (as used by most conventional aircraft) has only been proven for larger flies and dragonflies, but is likely to be widespread in insects given the number of independent control inputs available to them. Unlike in conventional aircraft, however, insects' control inputs are likely to be highly non-orthogonal, and this will tend to complicate the neural processing required to separate the various motions.
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Affiliation(s)
- G K Taylor
- Department of Zoology, Oxford University, UK.
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22
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Phylogenetic comparison and artificial selection. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2001. [DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4757-3401-0_9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
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Thomas MA, Walsh KA, Wolf MR, McPheron BA, Marden JH. Molecular phylogenetic analysis of evolutionary trends in stonefly wing structure and locomotor behavior. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2000; 97:13178-83. [PMID: 11078507 PMCID: PMC27198 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.230296997] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Insects in the order Plecoptera (stoneflies) use a form of two-dimensional aerodynamic locomotion called surface skimming to move across water surfaces. Because their weight is supported by water, skimmers can achieve effective aerodynamic locomotion even with small wings and weak flight muscles. These mechanical features stimulated the hypothesis that surface skimming may have been an intermediate stage in the evolution of insect flight, which has perhaps been retained in certain modern stoneflies. Here we present a phylogeny of Plecoptera based on nucleotide sequence data from the small subunit rRNA (18S) gene. By mapping locomotor behavior and wing structural data onto the phylogeny, we distinguish between the competing hypotheses that skimming is a retained ancestral trait or, alternatively, a relatively recent loss of flight. Our results show that basal stoneflies are surface skimmers, and that various forms of surface skimming are distributed widely across the plecopteran phylogeny. Stonefly wings show evolutionary trends in the number of cross veins and the thickness of the cuticle of the longitudinal veins that are consistent with elaboration and diversification of flight-related traits. These data support the hypothesis that the first stoneflies were surface skimmers, and that wing structures important for aerial flight have become elaborated and more diverse during the radiation of modern stoneflies.
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Affiliation(s)
- M A Thomas
- 208 Mueller Laboratory, Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
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24
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Affiliation(s)
- D F Boggs
- Department of Biology, Eastern Washington University, 526 Fifth Street, Cheney, WA 99004, USA
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