Locust wings built for the long haul

High-speed cameras capture how flexibility enhances efficiency

A new study may inspire aeronautical engineers to be more flexible with their designs. That’s because the bends and twists in locusts’ flexible, flapping wings power the insects’ extraordinary long-distance flights, a Sept. 18 Science paper reveals.

LESSONS FROM A LOCUST Patterns of air movement caused by a flying locust (middle and right columns) are similar to air patterns predicted by a computer simulation (left column).