spacer gif spacer gif spacer gif spacer gif spacer gif
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


spacer gif
     Home     Help     Feedback     Subscriptions     Archive     Search     Table of Contents    

This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow References
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Wootton, R. J.
Right arrow Articles by Smith, C. W.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Wootton, R. J.
Right arrow Articles by Smith, C. W.

Journal of Experimental Biology, Vol 203, Issue 19 2921-2931, Copyright © 2000 by Company of Biologists

JOURNAL ARTICLES

The hind wing of the desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria Forskal). I. Functional morphology and mode of operation

RJ Wootton, KE Evans, R Herbert and CW Smith
School of Biological Sciences, University of Exeter, Hatherly Laboratories, Prince of Wales Road, Exeter EX4 4PS, UK. r.j.wootton@exeter.ac.uk.

Detailed morphological investigation, mechanical testing and high-speed cinematography and stroboscopic examination of desert locusts, Schistocerca gregaria, in flight show that their hind wings are adapted to deform cyclically and automatically through the wing stroke and that the deformations are subtly dependent on the wings' structure: their shape, venation and vein design and the local properties of the membrane. The insects predominantly fly fast forwards, generating most force on the downstroke, and the hind wings generate extra lift by peeling apart at the beginning of the downstroke and by developing a cambered section during the stroke's translation phase through the 'umbrella effect' - an automatic consequence of the active extension of the wings' expanded posterior fan. Bending experiments indicate that most of the hind wing is more rigid to forces from below than from above and demonstrate that the membrane acts as a stressed skin to stiffen the structure.


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 J. Exp. Biol.Home page
F. Song, K. L. Lee, A. K. Soh, F. Zhu, and Y. L. Bai
Experimental studies of the material properties of the forewing of cicada (Homoptera, Cicadidae)
J. Exp. Biol., September 1, 2004; 207(17): 3035 - 3042.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Exp. Biol.Home page
K. L. Page and T. Matheson
Wing hair sensilla underlying aimed hindleg scratching of the locust
J. Exp. Biol., July 1, 2004; 207(15): 2691 - 2703.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Exp. Biol.Home page
S. A. Combes and T. L. Daniel
Flexural stiffness in insect wings I. Scaling and the influence of wing venation
J. Exp. Biol., September 1, 2003; 206(17): 2979 - 2987.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Exp. Biol.Home page
S. A. Combes and T. L. Daniel
Flexural stiffness in insect wings II. Spatial distribution and dynamic wing bending
J. Exp. Biol., September 1, 2003; 206(17): 2989 - 2997.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Exp. Biol.Home page
C. Smith, R Herbert, R. Wootton, and K. Evans
The hind wing of the desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria Forskal). II. Mechanical properties and functioning of the membrane
J. Exp. Biol., January 10, 2000; 203(19): 2933 - 2943.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Exp. Biol.Home page
R. Herbert, P. Young, C. Smith, R. Wootton, and K. Evans
The hind wing of the desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria Forskal). III. A finite element analysis of a deployable structure
J. Exp. Biol., January 10, 2000; 203(19): 2945 - 2955.
[Abstract] [PDF]


© The Company of Biologists Ltd 2000