Background optic flow modulates responses of multiple descending interneurons to object motion in locusts

Animals flying within natural environments are constantly challenged with complex visual information. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the impact of the visual background on the motion detection system. Locusts possess a well-identified looming detection pathway, comprising the lobula giant movement detector (LGMD) and the descending contralateral movement detector (DCMD). The LGMD/DCMD pathway responds preferably to objects on a collision course, and the response of this pathway is affected by the background complexity. However, multiple other neurons are also responsive to looming stimuli. In this study, we presented looming stimuli against different visual backgrounds to a rigidly-tethered locust, and simultaneously recorded the neural activity with a multichannel electrode. We found that the number of spike-sorted units that responded to looms was not affected by the visual background. However, the peak times of these units were delayed, and the rise phase was shortened in the presence of a flow field background. Dynamic factor analysis (DFA) revealed that fewer types of common trends were present among the units responding to looming stimuli against the flow field background, and the response begin time was delayed among the common trends as well. These results suggest that background complexity affects the response of multiple motion-sensitive neurons, yet the animal is still capable of responding to potentially hazardous visual stimuli.