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Attachment is vital for infant development, as warm social interactions support growth and well-being. In a classic 1958 study by Harry Harlow, the significance of warmth and comfort in forming attachments was examined. Harlow separated newborn monkeys from their mothers and provided two artificial "mothers": one made of cold wire and the other covered in soft cloth. Despite the wire mother offering food, the infant monkeys preferred the comfort of the cloth mother, demonstrating that...
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Complementary effect of attachment devices in stick insects (Phasmatodea).

Thies H Büscher1, Stanislav N Gorb2

  • 1Department of Functional Morphology and Biomechanics, Institute of Zoology, Kiel University, Am Botanischen Garten 9, 24118 Kiel, Germany tbuescher@zoologie.uni-kiel.de.

The Journal of Experimental Biology
|November 16, 2019
PubMed
Summary

Stick insects use a combination of claws, adhesive pads (arolia), and friction pads (euplantulae) for versatile locomotion. Their attachment system adapts to various surfaces, optimizing grip through specialized microstructures.

Keywords:
AdhesionAroliumBiomechanicsEuplantulaFrictionSurface roughness

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Area of Science:

  • Insect biomechanics
  • Locomotion and adhesion
  • Bio-inspired materials

Background:

  • Stick insects exhibit remarkable locomotion across diverse natural substrates.
  • Pretarsal arolia function as shear-sensitive adhesive pads, while tarsal euplantulae act as load-sensitive friction pads.
  • Euplantulae exhibit varying microstructures (smooth vs. nubby) for different surface roughness adaptations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the combined effects of claws, arolia, and euplantulae on stick insect attachment.
  • To determine the contribution of different attachment structures to overall performance across various postures and substrate roughnesses.
  • To compare attachment forces generated by the entire system.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of attachment pad usage in different postural situations for two stick insect species.
  • Assessment of attachment performance on substrates with varying degrees of roughness.
  • Measurement of attachment forces generated by the complete tarsal attachment system.

Main Results:

  • The combined system provides mechanical interlocking on rough surfaces (>12 µm) and adhesion/friction on smooth surfaces.
  • Arolia are consistently used on smooth surfaces; euplantulae are engaged when body weight provides sufficient load.
  • Attachment strength is optimized by matching pad microstructure to surface topography (smooth pads on smooth surfaces, nubby pads on micro-rough surfaces).
  • Least attachment performance was observed in the 0.3–1.0 µm roughness range.

Conclusions:

  • The synergistic action of claws, arolia, and euplantulae enables versatile attachment across inclines and a wide range of surface roughnesses.
  • Stick insect attachment is a multi-component system finely tuned to substrate properties and behavioral context.
  • Understanding these mechanisms can inform the design of novel adhesive and friction technologies.