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Abstract
The wings of Lepidoptera contain a matrix of living cells whose function requires appropriate temperatures. However, given their small thermal capacity, wings can overheat rapidly in the sun. Here we analyze butterfly wings across a wide range of simulated environmental conditions, and find that regions containing living cells are maintained at cooler temperatures. Diverse scale nanostructures and non-uniform cuticle thicknesses create a heterogeneous distribution of radiative cooling that selectively reduces the temperature of structures such as wing veins and androconial organs. These tissues are supplied by circulatory, neural and tracheal systems throughout the adult lifetime, indicating that the insect wing is a dynamic, living structure. Behavioral assays show that butterflies use wings to sense visible and infrared radiation, responding with specialized behaviors to prevent overheating of their wings. Our work highlights the physiological importance of wing temperature and how it is exquisitely regulated by structural and behavioral adaptations.
Butterfly wings have low thermal capacity and thus are vulnerable to damage by overheating. Here, Tsai et al. take an interdisciplinary approach to reveal the organs, nanostructures and behaviors that enable butterflies to sense and regulate their wing temperature.
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1 Columbia University, Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics, New York, USA (GRID:grid.21729.3f) (ISNI:0000000419368729)
2 Harvard University, Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Cambridge, USA (GRID:grid.38142.3c) (ISNI:000000041936754X)
3 Columbia University, Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics, New York, USA (GRID:grid.21729.3f) (ISNI:0000000419368729); Western Digital, San Jose, USA (GRID:grid.451113.3) (ISNI:0000 0000 8666 4326)
4 Harvard University, Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Cambridge, USA (GRID:grid.38142.3c) (ISNI:000000041936754X); University of California, Berkeley, Department of Integrative Biology, Berkeley, USA (GRID:grid.47840.3f) (ISNI:0000 0001 2181 7878)
5 University of Washington, Department of Electrical Engineering, Seattle, USA (GRID:grid.34477.33) (ISNI:0000000122986657)
6 Harvard University, Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Cambridge, USA (GRID:grid.38142.3c) (ISNI:000000041936754X); Harvard University, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, USA (GRID:grid.38142.3c) (ISNI:000000041936754X)