CAREER: Insect Flight in Turbulent Environments

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The goal of this project is to investigate how natural, turbulent airflow affects insect flight stability, and to determine how insects deal with this challenge. Turbulent airflow, which includes unpredictable wind gusts and swirling vortices, is found in nearly all natural habitats. However, the extent to which turbulence affects animal flight remains unknown, because most studies of flight are performed in lab settings with smooth, simplified airflow, and because we know very little about the characteristics of environmental turbulence at size scales relevant to flying animals. This project will address these unanswered questions by (1) quantifying the natural aerial environments that flying insects encounter and simulating them in a wind tunnel, (2) assessing the effects of turbulent flow on flight stability in two widespread insect pollinators, bumblebees and droneflies, and (3) investigating how insect body form and/or behaviors may help enhance flight stability in unpredictable aerial environments. The flight studies in this project focus on insect pollinators, as these typically travel long distances through a variety of habitats, performing essential services upon which plants, ecosystems, and the global food supply ultimately depend. The innovative research proposed will form the foundation for future studies examining how habitat alteration and climate change may affect the movement patterns and efficiency of pollinators and other flying animals by inducing changes in the aerial environment. In addition, this project may provide inspiration for the design of micro air vehicles (MAVs) by identifying novel methods of enhancing flight stability. This research is inherently multi-disciplinary, as an animal's movements depend on numerous aspects of its biology (from cells and tissues to behavior and ecology), and are mediated by physical interactions with the external environment. Due to these cross-disciplinary connections and the tangible, visually appealing nature of biological motions, this subject forms an ideal platform for engaging non-science majors and the general public in biology, physics and engineering, and for instilling a sense of excitement about scientific research. To take advantage of this unique opportunity, the educational objectives of this proposal are to (1) develop a general education course centered around movement in biology, and (2) expand and improve the Concord Field Station outreach program at Harvard University to expose K-12 students and the public first-hand to integrative, compelling scientific research. Through these educational efforts, this project will expose students of all ages as well as the general public to scientific research that integrates biology, physics & engineering, and that is tangible, exciting and memorable.