Why flies are so hard to swat
- added August 29, 2008
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A new study using high-speed imaging of flies buzzing around has identified part of just what makes them so good at avoiding the swatter - before taking off, the flies can first calculate where the threat is coming from, allowing them to carefully prepare the best route of escape. This amazing behavior occurs about 100 milliseconds earlier than all previously identified components of the escape response, much earlier than expected by researchers.
"The fly somehow 'knows' whether it needs to make large or small changes in its posture to reach the correct pre-flight stance [for escape]," This suggests that the fly must integrate visual information from its eyes with mechanosensory information from its legs.
It is hoped that these discoveries could also help in the development of high-tech sensors and gadgets.
"The fly somehow 'knows' whether it needs to make large or small changes in its posture to reach the correct pre-flight stance [for escape]," This suggests that the fly must integrate visual information from its eyes with mechanosensory information from its legs.
It is hoped that these discoveries could also help in the development of high-tech sensors and gadgets.
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