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Bijma NN, Billeschou P, Baird E, Dacke M, Kovalev A, Filippov AE, Manoonpong P, Gorb SN. The effect of surface topography on the ball-rolling ability of Kheper lamarcki (Scarabaeidae). J Exp Biol 2024; 227:jeb245920. [PMID: 38018408 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.245920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023]
Abstract
The most effective way to avoid intense inter- and intra-specific competition at the dung source, and to increase the distance to the other competitors, is to follow a single straight bearing. While ball-rolling dung beetles manage to roll their dung balls along nearly perfect straight paths when traversing flat terrain, the paths that they take when traversing more complex (natural) terrain are not well understood. In this study, we investigate the effect of complex surface topographies on the ball-rolling ability of Kheper lamarcki. Our results reveal that ball-rolling trajectories are strongly influenced by the characteristic scale of the surface structure. Surfaces with an increasing similarity between the average distance of elevations and the ball radius cause progressively more difficulties during ball transportation. The most important factor causing difficulties in ball transportation appears to be the slope of the substrate. Our results show that, on surfaces with a slope of 7.5 deg, more than 60% of the dung beetles lose control of their ball. Although dung beetles still successfully roll their dung ball against the slope on such inclinations, their ability to roll the dung ball sideways diminishes. However, dung beetles do not seem to adapt their path on inclines such that they roll their ball in the direction against the slope. We conclude that dung beetles strive for a straight trajectory away from the dung pile, and that their actual path is the result of adaptations to particular surface topographies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nienke N Bijma
- Department of Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Zoological Institute, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten 9, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Peter Billeschou
- SDU Biorobotics, The Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller Institute University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, Odense M DK-5230, Denmark
| | - Emily Baird
- Department of Functional Zoomorphology, Stockholm University, Svante Arrhenius väg 18b, 11418 Stockholm, Sweden
- Lund Vision Group, Department of Biology, Lund University, Sölvegatan 35, 223 62 Lund, Sweden
| | - Marie Dacke
- Lund Vision Group, Department of Biology, Lund University, Sölvegatan 35, 223 62 Lund, Sweden
| | - Alexander Kovalev
- Department of Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Zoological Institute, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten 9, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Alexander E Filippov
- Department of Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Zoological Institute, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten 9, 24118 Kiel, Germany
- Donetsk Institute for Physics and Engineering, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 83114 Donetsk, Ukraine
| | - Poramate Manoonpong
- SDU Biorobotics, The Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller Institute University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, Odense M DK-5230, Denmark
- Bio-inspired Robotics & Neural Engineering Lab, Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology, 21210 Rayong, Thailand
| | - Stanislav N Gorb
- Department of Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Zoological Institute, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten 9, 24118 Kiel, Germany
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Eraghi SH, Toofani A, Guilani RJA, Ramezanpour S, Bijma NN, Sedaghat A, Yasamandaryaei A, Gorb S, Rajabi H. Basal complex: a smart wing component for automatic shape morphing. Commun Biol 2023; 6:853. [PMID: 37591993 PMCID: PMC10435446 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-05206-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2023] [Accepted: 08/02/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Insect wings are adaptive structures that automatically respond to flight forces, surpassing even cutting-edge engineering shape-morphing systems. A widely accepted but not yet explicitly tested hypothesis is that a 3D component in the wing's proximal region, known as basal complex, determines the quality of wing shape changes in flight. Through our study, we validate this hypothesis, demonstrating that the basal complex plays a crucial role in both the quality and quantity of wing deformations. Systematic variations of geometric parameters of the basal complex in a set of numerical models suggest that the wings have undergone adaptations to reach maximum camber under loading. Inspired by the design of the basal complex, we develop a shape-morphing mechanism that can facilitate the shape change of morphing blades for wind turbines. This research enhances our understanding of insect wing biomechanics and provides insights for the development of simplified engineering shape-morphing systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sepehr H Eraghi
- Mechanical Intelligence (MI) Research Group, South Bank Applied BioEngineering Research (SABER), School of Engineering, London South Bank University, London, UK
| | - Arman Toofani
- Mechanical Intelligence (MI) Research Group, South Bank Applied BioEngineering Research (SABER), School of Engineering, London South Bank University, London, UK
| | - Ramin J A Guilani
- Mechanical Intelligence (MI) Research Group, South Bank Applied BioEngineering Research (SABER), School of Engineering, London South Bank University, London, UK
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran
| | - Shayan Ramezanpour
- Mechanical Intelligence (MI) Research Group, South Bank Applied BioEngineering Research (SABER), School of Engineering, London South Bank University, London, UK
| | - Nienke N Bijma
- Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Institute of Zoology, Kiel University, Kiel, Germany
| | - Alireza Sedaghat
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Lahijan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Lahijan, Iran
| | - Armin Yasamandaryaei
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Lahijan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Lahijan, Iran
| | - Stanislav Gorb
- Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Institute of Zoology, Kiel University, Kiel, Germany
| | - Hamed Rajabi
- Mechanical Intelligence (MI) Research Group, South Bank Applied BioEngineering Research (SABER), School of Engineering, London South Bank University, London, UK.
- Division of Mechanical Engineering and Design, School of Engineering, London South Bank University, London, UK.
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Bijma NN, Filippov AE, Gorb SN. Sisyphus and his rock: Quasi-random walk inspired by the motion of a ball transported by a dung beetle on combined terrain. J Theor Biol 2021; 520:110659. [PMID: 33662373 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2021.110659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2019] [Revised: 02/12/2021] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
The majority of biologically inspired dynamic problems are essentially defined by the complexity of the contact surface where such motion takes place. From a statistical point of view, such a surface in many biological problems is typically a combination of a universal scale invariant (fractal) component and a well-defined component having a characteristic scale. If the biological object, here a dung ball, or its parts have a size comparable to the dimensions of the surface peculiarities, one can expect a strong influence on the motion. To avoid competition for the same food resource, some dung-feeding insect species form a dung ball and roll it away from the dung pile. In order to quickly escape competition, dung beetles seem to strictly follow an initial bearing. On flat terrain, they manage to roll a dung ball along a nearly perfect straight path. However, on a more realistic terrain, which normally includes both components mentioned above, the motion is more complex. In this study, we numerically model the ball transportation on terrain with different scales of surface profile. A strong correlation is observed between effective ball transportation (time, distance, work) and the ratio of the size of the ball relative to the size of the terrain roughness. Surface irregularities, with a characteristic size comparable to the ball diameter, are negatively correlated to the efficiency of ball transportation. In addition a strong correlation is found between the quasi random noise, numerically simulating the activity of a dung beetle trying to escape from a valley in which it is trapped, and the success in ball transportation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nienke N Bijma
- Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Zoological Institute, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten, 1-9, Kiel 24118, Germany.
| | - Alexander E Filippov
- Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Zoological Institute, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten, 1-9, Kiel 24118, Germany; Donetsk Institute for Physics and Engineering, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Donetsk, Ukraine
| | - Stanislav N Gorb
- Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Zoological Institute, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten, 1-9, Kiel 24118, Germany
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Bijma NN, Gorb SN, Kleinteich T. Landing on branches in the frog Trachycephalus resinifictrix (Anura: Hylidae). J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2016; 202:267-76. [PMID: 26803830 PMCID: PMC4819504 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-016-1069-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2015] [Revised: 12/18/2015] [Accepted: 12/22/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Frogs (Lissamphibia: Anura) are famous for their saltatory or hopping locomotion, which is related to numerous anatomical specialisations that are characteristic for the group. However, while the biomechanics of take-off in frogs have been studied in detail, much less is known on how frogs land after a jump. Besides terrestrial and aquatic species, several lineages of frogs adopted an arboreal lifestyle and especially the biomechanics of landing on challenging, small, and unpredictable substrates, such as leaves or branches, are virtually unknown. Here we studied the landing kinematics of the arboreal frog Trachycephalus resinifictrix (Hylidae) on a wooden stick that was used to mimic a small tree branch. We observed two different landing behaviours: (1) landing on the abdomen and (2) attachment with the toes of either the forelimb or the hindlimb. In the latter case, the frogs performed a cartwheel around the stick, while they were only attached by their adhesive toe pads. We estimated the forces that act on the toes during this behaviour to be up to fourteen times the body weight of the animals. This behaviour demonstrates the remarkable adhesive capabilities of the toe pads and the body control of the frogs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nienke N Bijma
- Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Zoological Institute, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten 9, 24118, Kiel, Germany
| | - Stanislav N Gorb
- Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Zoological Institute, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten 9, 24118, Kiel, Germany
| | - Thomas Kleinteich
- Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Zoological Institute, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten 9, 24118, Kiel, Germany.
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