© Chengyu Li

Odor-Guided Navigation

Fruit Fly "Surge" Upwind

The ability to track odor plumes to their source (food, mate, etc.) is key to the survival of many insects. During this odor-guided navigation, flapping wings could actively draw odorants to the antennae to enhance olfactory sensitivity, but it is unclear if improving olfactory function comes at a cost to aerodynamic performance. Here, we computationally quantify both aerodynamic and olfactory functions in forward flight.