Effect of light intensity on flight control and temporal properties of photoreceptors in bumblebees

The Journal of Experimental Biology
Therese ReberMarie Dacke

Abstract

To control flight, insects rely on the pattern of visual motion generated on the retina as they move through the environment. When light levels fall, vision becomes less reliable and flight control thus becomes more challenging. Here, we investigated the effect of light intensity on flight control by filming the trajectories of free-flying bumblebees (Bombus terrestris, Linnaeus 1758) in an experimental tunnel at different light levels. As light levels fell, flight speed decreased and the flight trajectories became more tortuous but the bees were still remarkably good at centring their flight about the tunnel's midline. To investigate whether this robust flight performance can be explained by visual adaptations in the bumblebee retina, we also examined the response speed of the green-sensitive photoreceptors at the same light intensities. We found that the response speed of the photoreceptors significantly decreased as light levels fell. This indicates that bumblebees have both behavioural (reduction in flight speed) and retinal (reduction in response speed of the photoreceptors) adaptations to allow them to fly in dim light. However, the more tortuous flight paths recorded in dim light suggest that these adaptations do not sup...Continue Reading

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Feb 26, 2016·Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience·Aravin ChakravarthiAlmut Kelber
Mar 8, 2016·Current Biology : CB·Anna Lisa StöcklEric James Warrant
Apr 12, 2016·Current Opinion in Insect Science·Natalie Hempel de IbarraMisha Vorobyev
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Aug 21, 2020·Current Opinion in Insect Science·Emily BairdMarie Guiraud
Jun 19, 2021·Ecology and Evolution·Katie HallNatalie Hempel de Ibarra

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