Functional Morphology and Evolutionary Diversity of Vibration Receptors in Insects

Abstract

Vibratory signals of biotic and abiotic origin occur commonly in the environment of all living organisms. Many species deliberately produce such signals for communication purposes. Thus, it is not only useful but also advantageous and/or necessary to be able to detect and process vibratory signals with appropriate receptor organs. Mechanoreception is suggested to be evolutionarily ancient among animals (Kung 2005; Thurm 2001). Given the long evolutionary history, such receptors have very different anatomical structures and corresponding physiological properties. Responding to mechanical stress is a basic property of cells, even outside the nervous system. In the nervous system, specialized sensory cells and organs register mechanosensory signals and impart the information to higher centers. Structural and molecular adaptations in various mechanoreceptors can push these systems to a sensitivity at or near to the physical limits, e.g., with respect to the noise--stimuli relation. Here, we will deal with the vibratory receptor systems of insects, with a focus on the specialized scolopidial sensory organs from molecular mechanisms to systems analysis.