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Journal of Experimental Biology, Vol 156, Issue 1 503-517, Copyright © 1991 by Company of Biologists

JOURNAL ARTICLES

Perturbation of the motor system in freely walking cockroaches. II. The timing of motor activity in leg muscles after amputation of a middle leg

F Delcomyn
Department of Entomology, University of Illinois, Urbana 61801.

1. The effects of amputation of a middle leg on the motor pattern in the legs of freely walking cockroaches (Periplaneta americana L.) were studied. 2. The general effects of amputating a middle leg are similar to those arising from amputation of a rear leg. These effects are: multiple bursting, more variable and inconsistent timing (phase) between bursts and a tendency for timing effects to appear only during relatively slow walking. 3. The phase of bursts in the amputated stump relative to bursts in the leg in front of it was speed-dependent. However, the phase of stump bursts relative to bursts in the legs across from and behind the stump were not especially dependent on the speed of walking. In general, the phases of bursts in most leg pairs seemed relatively little affected by the amputation except for an increase in scatter. 4. It is concluded that loss of a middle leg disrupts the motor pattern less severely than does loss of a rear leg. The implications of this and other results for the understanding of motor control are discussed.

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