Leaf beetle attachment on wrinkles: isotropic friction on anisotropic surfaces

The influence of surface roughness on the attachment ability of insects has been repeatedly reported. In previous experiments, complex surface topographies were used as test substrates, whereas periodical structures have so far been neglected. In the present study, traction experiments with adult beetles Gastrophysa viridula and Leptinotarsa decemlineata were carried out to study the influence of surfaces, structured with periodical wrinkles, on insect attachment. Force measurements were carried out on male and female insects, both intact and after removal of claws, performing tethered walking on five polydimethylsiloxane substrates: (i) smooth, non-structured (control), (ii-v) structured with wrinkles of different wavelengths (366, 502, 911 and 25,076 nm). In two test series, beetles walked either perpendicular or parallel to the wrinkle alignment. Adults of G. viridula produced generally higher forces than those of L. decemlineata. The results show that the alignment of wrinkles had no significant influence on the force generation by beetles, probably because of the skewed position of their tarsomeres relative to the substrates. In both sexes, the highest force values were obtained on surfaces with wrinkles of 25 μm wavelength. On other wrinkled substrates, forces were significantly reduced in both males and females compared with the smooth, flat control, with the minimum force achieved on wrinkles with a wavelength of 911 nm.