Menz Myles H M, Scacco Martina, Bürki-Spycher Hans-Martin, Williams Hannah J, Reynolds Don R, Chapman Jason W, Wikelski Martin
Department of Migration, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, 78315 Radolfzell, Germany.
College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia.
Science. 2022 Aug 12;377(6607):764-768. doi: 10.1126/science.abn1663. Epub 2022 Aug 11.
Each year, trillions of insects make long-range seasonal migrations. These movements are relatively well understood at a population level, but how individual insects achieve them remains elusive. Behavioral responses to conditions en route are little studied, primarily owing to the challenges of tracking individual insects. Using a light aircraft and individual radio tracking, we show that nocturnally migrating death's-head hawkmoths maintain control of their flight trajectories over long distances. The moths did not just fly with favorable tailwinds; during a given night, they also adjusted for head and crosswinds to precisely hold course. This behavior indicates that the moths use a sophisticated internal compass to maintain seasonally beneficial migratory trajectories independent of wind conditions, illuminating how insects traverse long distances to take advantage of seasonal resources.
每年，数以万亿计的昆虫会进行远距离的季节性迁徙。这些迁徙在种群层面上相对已为人所熟知，但个体昆虫是如何完成这些迁徙的仍不清楚。对于沿途环境条件的行为反应研究甚少，主要是因为追踪个体昆虫存在挑战。我们利用轻型飞机和个体无线电追踪技术，发现夜间迁徙的鬼脸天蛾能够在长距离飞行中保持对飞行轨迹的控制。这些蛾子并非仅仅借助顺风飞行；在特定的夜晚，它们还会根据逆风及侧风进行调整，以精确地保持航线。这种行为表明，蛾子利用了一种复杂的内置罗盘来维持与风向无关的、季节性有益的迁徙轨迹，这揭示了昆虫是如何长途跋涉以利用季节性资源的。
