The Evolution of Insect Wings and Their Sensory Apparatus

1997 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael H. Dickinson ◽  
Susannah Hannaford ◽  
John Palka
1964 ◽  
Vol 96 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 98-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. W. Arnold

Despite their inert appearance, the wings of insects are living appendages and are supplied with blood. This is true for definitive wings as well as for developing ones, and for modified wings such as tegmina, elytra, hemelytra, and halteres as for those that are specialized for flight. Typically the blood circulates only through the wing veins, but in some insects it escapes into the surrounding membrane in certain areas, and in highly modified forms it may be entirely unconfined. The course of circulation is basically the same in the wings of most insects. It flows outward from the body in the costo-medial veins, moves toward the posterior margins via cross-veins, and returns to the body through the cubito-anal veins and axillary cord. However, rhe precise route followed is highly variable concomitant with distinctive patterns of venation in different taxonomic groups and with wing structure. This is illustrated for a number of orders.


2008 ◽  
Vol 20 (20) ◽  
pp. 204142 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Sudo ◽  
K Tsuyuki ◽  
T Yano ◽  
K Takagi
Keyword(s):  

Water exchange between insects and their environment via the vapour phase includes influx and efflux components. The pressure cycle theory postulates that insects (and some other arthropods) can regulate the relative rates of influx and efflux of water vapour by modulating hydrostatic pressures at a vapour-liquid interface by compressing or expanding a sealed, gas-filled cavity. Some such cavities, like the tracheal system, could be compressed by elevated pressure in all or part of the haemocoele. Others, perhaps including the muscular rectum of flea prepupae, could be compressed by intrinsic muscles. Maddrell Insect Physiol . 8, 199 (1971)) suggested a pressure cycle mechanism of this kind to account for rectal uptake of water vapour in Thermobia but did not find it compatible with quantitative information then available. Newer evidence conforms better with the proposed mechanism. Cyclical pressure changes are of widespread occurrence in insects and have sometimes been shown to depend on water status. Evidence is reviewed for the role of the tracheal system as an avenue for net exchange of water between the insect and its environment. Because water and respiratory gases share common pathways, most published findings fail to distinguish between the conventional view that the tracheal system has evolved as a site for distribution and exchange of respiratory gases and that any water exchange occurring in it is generally incidental and nonadaptive, and the theory proposed here. The pressure cycle theory offers a supplementary explanation not incompatible with evidence so far available. The relative importance of water economy and respiratory exchange in the functioning of compressible cavities such as the tracheal system remains to be explored. Some further implications of the pressure cycle theory are discussed. Consideration is given to the possible involvement of vapour-phase transport in the internal redistribution of water within the body. It is suggested that some insect wings may constitute internal vapour-liquid exchange sites, where water can move from the body fluids to the intratracheal gas. Ambient and body temperature must influence rates of vapour-liquid mass transfer. If elevated body temperature promotes evaporative discharge of the metabolic water burden that has been shown to accumulate during flight in some large insects, their minimum threshold thoracic temperature for sustained flight may relate to the maintenance of water balance. The role of water economy in the early evolution of insect wings is considered. Pressure cycles might help to maintain water balance in surface-breathing insects living in fresh and saline waters, but the turbulence of the surface of the open sea might prevent truly marine forms from using this mechanism.


2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julyan H. E. Cartwright ◽  
Diego L. González ◽  
Oreste Piro

Author(s):  
Masaki Fuchiwaki ◽  
Kazuhiro Tanaka

A typical example of the flow field around a moving elastic body is that around butterfly wings. Butterflies fly by skillfully controlling this flow field, and vortices are generated around their bodies. The motion of their elastic wings produces dynamic fluid forces by manipulating the flow field. For this reason, there has been increased academic interest in the flow field and dynamic fluid forces produced by butterfly wings. A number of recent studies have qualitatively and quantitatively examined the flow field around insect wings. In some such previous studies, the vortex ring or vortex loop formed on the wing was visualized. However, the characteristics of dynamic forces generated by the flapping insect wing are not yet sufficiently understood. The purpose of the present study is to investigate the characteristics of dynamic lift and thrust produced by the flapping butterfly wing and the relationship between the dynamic lift and thrust and the flow field around the butterfly. We conducted the dynamic lift and thrust measurements of a fixed flapping butterfly, Idea leuconoe, using a six-axes sensor. Moreover, two-dimensional PIV measurement was conducted in the wake of the butterfly. The butterfly produced dynamic lift in downward flapping which became maximum at a flapping angle of approximately 0.0 deg. At the same time, the butterfly produced negative dynamic thrust during downward flapping. The negative dynamic thrust was not produced hydrodynamically by a flapping butterfly wing because a jet was not formed in front of the butterfly. The negative dynamic thrust was the kicking force for jumping and the maximum of this kicking force was about 6.0 times as large as the weight. On the other hand, the butterfly produced dynamic thrust in upward flapping which was approximately 6.0 times as large as the weight of the butterfly. However, the attacking force by the abdomen of the butterfly was included in the dynamic thrust and we have not yet clarified quantitatively the dynamic thrust produced by the butterfly wing.


2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (40) ◽  
pp. 9905-9910 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jordan Hoffmann ◽  
Seth Donoughe ◽  
Kathy Li ◽  
Mary K. Salcedo ◽  
Chris H. Rycroft

Insect wings are typically supported by thickened struts called veins. These veins form diverse geometric patterns across insects. For many insect species, even the left and right wings from the same individual have veins with unique topological arrangements, and little is known about how these patterns form. We present a large-scale quantitative study of the fingerprint-like “secondary veins.” We compile a dataset of wings from 232 species and 17 families from the order Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies), a group with particularly elaborate vein patterns. We characterize the geometric arrangements of veins and develop a simple model of secondary vein patterning. We show that our model is capable of recapitulating the vein geometries of species from other, distantly related winged insect clades.


Author(s):  
N. Chari ◽  
A. P. Rao ◽  
Ponna Srinivas ◽  
N. Girish
Keyword(s):  

2020 ◽  
Vol 60 (5) ◽  
pp. 1208-1220 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary K Salcedo ◽  
John J Socha

Synopsis Insect wings are living, flexible structures composed of tubular veins and thin wing membrane. Wing veins can contain hemolymph (insect blood), tracheae, and nerves. Continuous flow of hemolymph within insect wings ensures that sensory hairs, structural elements such as resilin, and other living tissue within the wings remain functional. While it is well known that hemolymph circulates through insect wings, the extent of wing circulation (e.g., whether flow is present in every vein, and whether it is confined to the veins alone) is not well understood, especially for wings with complex wing venation. Over the last 100 years, scientists have developed experimental methods including microscopy, fluorescence, and thermography to observe flow in the wings. Recognizing and evaluating the importance of hemolymph movement in insect wings is critical in evaluating how the wings function both as flight appendages, as active sensors, and as thermoregulatory organs. In this review, we discuss the history of circulation in wings, past and present experimental techniques for measuring hemolymph, and broad implications for the field of hemodynamics in insect wings.


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