The Library
Functional morphology and efficiency of the antenna cleaner in Camponotus rufifemurants
Tools
Hackmann, Alexander, Delacave, Henry, Robinson, Adam, Labonte, David and Federle, Walter (2015) Functional morphology and efficiency of the antenna cleaner in Camponotus rufifemurants. Royal Society Open Science , 2 (7). pp. 1-10. 150129. doi:10.1098/rsos.150129 ISSN 2054-5703.
|
PDF
WRAP_150129.full.pdf - Published Version - Requires a PDF viewer. Available under License Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. Download (961Kb) | Preview |
Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.150129
Abstract
Contamination of body surfaces can negatively affect many physiological functions. Insects have evolved different adaptations for removing contamination, including surfaces that allow passive self-cleaning and structures for active cleaning. Here, we study the function of the antenna cleaner in Camponotus rufifemur ants, a clamp-like structure consisting of a notch on the basitarsus facing a spur on the tibia, both bearing cuticular ‘combs’ and ‘brushes’. The ants clamp one antenna tightly between notch and spur, pull it through, and subsequently clean the antenna cleaner itself with the mouthparts. We simulated cleaning strokes by moving notch or spur over antennae contaminated with fluorescent particles. The notch removed particles more efficiently than the spur, but both components eliminated more than 60% of the particles with the first stroke. Ablation of bristles, brush and comb strongly reduced the efficiency, indicating that they are essential for cleaning. To study how comb and brush remove particles of different sizes, we contaminated antennae of living ants, and anaesthetized them immediately after they had performed the first cleaning stroke. Different-sized beads were trapped in distinct zones of the notch, consistent with the gap widths between cuticular outgrowths. This suggests that the antenna cleaner operates like a series of sieves that remove the largest objects first, followed by smaller ones, down to the smallest particles that get caught by adhesion.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Subjects: | Q Science > QL Zoology | ||||||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Medicine > Warwick Medical School | ||||||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Ants -- Anatomy, Antennae (Biology) | ||||||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Royal Society Open Science | ||||||||
Publisher: | The Royal Society Publishing | ||||||||
ISSN: | 2054-5703 | ||||||||
Official Date: | 22 July 2015 | ||||||||
Dates: |
|
||||||||
Volume: | 2 | ||||||||
Number: | 7 | ||||||||
Number of Pages: | 10 | ||||||||
Page Range: | pp. 1-10 | ||||||||
Article Number: | 150129 | ||||||||
DOI: | 10.1098/rsos.150129 | ||||||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||||||
Access rights to Published version: | Open Access (Creative Commons) | ||||||||
Date of first compliant deposit: | 29 February 2016 | ||||||||
Date of first compliant Open Access: | 29 February 2016 | ||||||||
Funder: | Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (Great Britain) (BBSRC) | ||||||||
Grant number: | BB/I008667/1 (BBSRC) |
Request changes or add full text files to a record
Repository staff actions (login required)
View Item |
Downloads
Downloads per month over past year