Physiological and biomechanical mechanisms of animal maneuverability

我的nserc资助项目的目标是确定复杂运动的机制，并在综合生物学中训练来自不同背景的HQP。机动性被定义为改变速度和方向的能力，是一项决定生死的基本活动。尽管大多数关于这一主题的研究都是在稳态条件下进行的，例如，跑步机，但我的工作重点是小鸟，因为它们擅长在实验室环境中进行复杂的飞行。到目前为止，我的发现基金项目一直专注于生物力学，并发表了一系列备受瞩目的论文。我们确定了所有动物共同的机动性的三个主要方面，确定了与每个方面不同的生物力学关联，并开发了一种实验方法，现在可以应用于研究任何动物的机动性。我最近的工作指出了视觉信号的一个新的关键作用：自我运动产生一个被称为光流的全局视觉信号，而另一个个体的运动产生一个被称为物体运动的局部信号。现在有了新技术，我可以提出这些信号如何影响机动性的问题，这在以前是不可能的。未来五年我的探索基金计划有三个主要目标。研究将集中在独居的安娜蜂鸟（Calypte Anna）和群居的斑马雀（Taenopygia guttata）上。目的1是确定光流和物体运动的自然统计数据如何因运动模式、栖息地和同种物体的存在而不同。两名硕士研究生将开发并使用头戴式摄像机，记录蜂鸟在单独飞行和竞争飞行时到达眼睛的视觉信号，以及斑马雀在单独飞行和成群飞行时的视觉信号。目的2是确定视觉运动神经元的反应是否调谐到特定物种的环境和社会信号。博士生将使用从目标1确定的视觉信号来测量神经元的电生理反应。目的3是确定在机动飞行过程中，独居的蜂鸟是否将同种鸟类登记为“物体”，而群居的斑胸草雀是否将一群同种鸟类登记为“光流”。一名博士和两名硕士学生将通过虚拟现实、基因表达和体内电生理学结合行为和神经科学方法。本研究将解决运动生物力学和视觉神经科学的基本问题。拟议的实验结果也将揭示编码栖息地和其他飞行动物的特定特征的算法。由于这些制导算法在行为和信号处理方面都具有高分辨率，因此这项工作将有很大的潜力来推进机器人和无人机的设计，以完成导航复杂栖息地和群体集体运动的任务。

The goals of my NSERC-funded program are to determine the mechanisms of complex locomotion, and to train HQP from diverse backgrounds in integrative biology. Maneuverability is defined as the capacity to make changes in speed and direction, and is an essential activity that can define the margin between life and death. Whereas most studies on this topic are conducted in steady-state conditions, e.g., treadmills, my work focuses on small birds because they are adept at complex flight within laboratory settings. To date, my Discovery Grant program has focused on biomechanics and has produced a series of high-profile papers. We identified three major aspects of maneuvering that are common to all animals, determined distinct biomechanical associations with each aspect, and developed an experimental approach that can now be applied to studying maneuverability in any animal. My most recent work pointed to a new and critical role for visual signals: self-motion generates a global visual signal termed optic flow, whereas the movements of another individual produces a local signal termed object motion. New techniques are now available that will allow me to ask questions about how these signals influence maneuverability, which was not previously possible. There are three major objectives for the next five years of my Discovery Grant program. The research will focus on solitary Anna's hummingbirds (Calypte anna) and social zebra finches (Taenopygia guttata). Objective 1 is to determine how the natural statistics of optic flow and object motion differ by mode of locomotion, habitat, and the presence of conspecifics. Two MSc students will develop and use head-mounted cameras to record the visual signals reaching the eye of hummingbirds during solitary and competitive flight, and on zebra finches flying solitary and in flocks. Objective 2 is to determine if the responses of visual motion neurons are tuned to species-specific environmental and social signals. A PhD student will use visual signals determined from objective 1 to measure electrophysiological responses of neurons. Objective 3 is to determine if during maneuvering flight, solitary hummingbirds register conspecific birds as "objects" and social zebra finches register a group of conspecifics as "optic flow". One PhD and two MSc students will combine behavioral and neuroscience approaches through virtual reality, gene expression and in vivo electrophysiology. This research will address fundamental questions at the interface of locomotor biomechanics and visual neuroscience. The results of the proposed experiments will also reveal algorithms for encoding specific features of habitats and of other animals in flight. Because these guidance algorithms will have high resolution with respect to both behavior and signal processing, the work will have significant potential to advance robot and drone design for the tasks of navigating complex habitats and collective movement of groups.