Polarized light vision in the eye of the desert locust,Schistocerca gregaria - An electrophysiological and histological approach

Several studies strongly imply that the desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) is able to use polarized light patterns in the sky for orientation tasks. A specialized region in its compound eye (DRA) contains photoreceptor cells which are morphologically adapted for the detection of polarized light....

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Schmeling, Fabian
Contributors: Homberg, Uwe, (Prof. Dr.) (Thesis advisor)
Format: Doctoral Thesis
Language:English
Published: Philipps-Universität Marburg 2015
Subjects:
Online Access:PDF Full Text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Several studies strongly imply that the desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) is able to use polarized light patterns in the sky for orientation tasks. A specialized region in its compound eye (DRA) contains photoreceptor cells which are morphologically adapted for the detection of polarized light. This work focuses on the physiological and morphological examination of photoreceptor cells inside and outside the DRA. By applying electrophysiological methods it was tested for spectral, absolute, polarization and angular sensitivity of receptor cells by using electrophysiological methods. Tracer injections revealed projection patterns of the respective cells. In addition data of the solitarious and gregarious phase of the desert locusts were compared.
DOI:10.17192/z2015.0394