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Journal of Experimental Biology 105,215-229 (1983)
Published by Company of Biologists 1983

Behaviour and Motor Output of Stick Insects Walking on a Slippery Surface: I. Forward Walking

S. EPSTEIN ¹ and D. GRAHAM ¹

¹ Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Massachusetts, Fb. Biologie, Universitaet Kaiserslautern Amherst, MA 01003, U.S.A., D-6750, F.R.G.

The walking coordination and motor output of intact adult stick insects was examined when they were supported above an oiled glass surface. The viscosity of the silicone oil was adjusted so that the animal walked with either tripod or slow-walk coordination. In the absence of mechanical coupling through the substrate, the legs typically moved at different speeds in retraction. If these differences were not too large the walks were well-coordinated in the transitions from stance to swing phase. Motor output was variable and sometimes showed periods of very weak activity in depressors and retractors. Under these conditions an individual leg moved much more slowly than its neighbours, producing 2:1 coordination patterns.

Key words: Walking, motor-output, oil-substrate

Submitted on August 2, 1982
Accepted on February 1, 1983

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