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Abstract:
When an insect gets ready to fly, several sensory-motor systems must be deployed to ensure proper acquisition of sensory input and behavioural output. These behaviours are as varied as antennal positioning, head stabilization, wing and haltere coordination and abdominal reflexes, all operating in exquisite synchrony to make stable flight possible. This coordination occurs in time-scales that challenge their ability to sense and respond. How are these diverse reflexes coordinated in timescales of less than a human eye blink? Our recent work demonstrates that the answer to this question lies not only in the nervous control of flight, but also in the physical architecture of the thorax. In my colloquium, I will describe the mechanisms that enable flight stability in insects.
References:
1] Deora, T, Singh, AK and Sane, SP* (2015) Biomechanical basis of wing and haltere coordination in flies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 201412279
2] Sadaf, S, Reddy OV, Sane, SP and Hasan, G* (2015) Neural control of wing coordination in flies. Current Biology 25 (1), 80-86.
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