Meeting Abstract

101.2  Sunday, Jan. 6  The role of head stabilization in the flight control system of hawkmoths WINDSOR, S.P.*; TAYLOR, G.K.; Univ. of Oxford; Univ. of Oxford shane.windsor@zoo.ox.ac.uk

During flight many insects actively stabilize their head relative to their surroundings. Gaze stabilization acts to significantly simplify the processing and extraction of relevant visual information but in addition to this the act of stabilizing the head may also play a significant role in the flight control system of flying insects. Using a virtual reality flight simulator we measured the head motions of the hawkmoth Hyles lineata in response to complete wide-field visual motion. The moths responded strongly to visual motion, moving their heads to greatly reduce the dynamic range of the visual stimuli seen by the eyes. In addition to stabilizing the visual field the orientation of the head relative to the body potentially gives the insect information about the angular orientation of its body relative to the world around it. Using mathematical models the advantages and limitations of head stabilization and its role in the flight control system of a flying insect were investigated. These models indicate that head stabilization may play an important role in insect flight control.