Interspecific variation in bristle number on forewings of tiny insects does not influence clap-and-fling aerodynamics.

Miniature insects must overcome significant viscous resistance in order to fly. They typically possess wings with long bristles on the fringes and use a clap-and-fling mechanism to augment lift. These unique solutions to the extreme conditions of flight at tiny sizes (<2 mm body length) suggest that natural selection has optimized wing design for better aerodynamic performance. However, species vary in wingspan, number of bristles (n) and bristle gap (G) to diameter (D) ratio (G/D). How this variation relates to body length (BL) and its effects on aerodynamics remain unknown. We measured forewing images of 38 species of thrips and 21 species of fairyflies. Our phylogenetic comparative analyses showed that n and wingspan scaled positively and similarly with BL across both groups, whereas G/D decreased with BL, with a sharper decline in thrips. We next measured aerodynamic forces and visualized flow on physical models of bristled wings performing clap-and-fling kinematics at a chord-based Reynolds number of 10 using a dynamically scaled robotic platform. We examined the effects of dimensional (G, D, wingspan) and non-dimensional (n, G/D) geometric variables on dimensionless lift and drag. We found that: (1) increasing G reduced drag more than decreasing D; (2) changing n had minimal impact on lift generation; and (3) varying G/D minimally affected aerodynamic forces. These aerodynamic results suggest little pressure to functionally optimize n and G/D. Combined with the scaling relationships between wing variables and BL, much wing variation in tiny flying insects might be best explained by underlying shared growth factors.

Pausing after clap reduces power required to fling wings apart at low Reynolds number.

The smallest flying insects, such as thrips (body length < 2 mm), are challenged with needing to move in air at a chord-based Reynolds number (Rec) of the order of 10. Pronounced viscous dissipation at such a low Recrequires considerable energetic expenditure for tiny insects to stay aloft. Thrips flap their densely bristled wings at large stroke amplitudes, bringing both wings in close proximity to each other at the end of upstroke ('clap') and moving their wings apart at the start of downstroke ('fling'). From high-speed videos of free take-off flights of thrips, we observed that their forewings remain clapped for approximately 10% of the wingbeat cycle before the start of downstroke (fling stroke). We sought to examine if there are aerodynamic advantages associated with pausing wing motion after upstroke (clap stroke) and before downstroke (fling stroke) at Rec= 10. A dynamically scaled robotic clap and fling platform was used to measure lift and drag forces generated by physical models of solid (non-bristled) and bristled wings in single wing and wing pair configurations, for pause times ranging between 0% to 41% of the cycle. For solid and bristled wing pairs, pausing before the start of downstroke (fling stroke) dissipated vorticity generated at the end of upstroke (clap stroke). This resulted in a decrease in the drag coefficient averaged across downstroke (fling stroke) and in turn reduced power requirements. Also, increasing the pause time resulted in a larger decrease in the dimensionless power coefficient for the wing-pair configurations compared to the single-wing configurations. Our findings show that wing-wing interaction observed in the clap and fling motion of tiny insect wings is necessary to realize the aerodynamic benefits of pausing before fling, by reducing the power required to clap and fling for a small compromise in lift.

Aerodynamic effects of varying solid surface area of bristled wings performing clap and fling.

The smallest flying insects with body lengths under 2 mm show a marked preference for wings consisting of a thin membrane with long bristles, and the use of clap and fling kinematics to augment lift at Reynolds numbers (Re) of approximately 10. Bristled wings have been shown to reduce drag forces in clap and fling, but the aerodynamic roles of several bristled wing geometric variables remain unclear. This study examines the effects of varying the ratio of membrane area (A M) to total wing area (A T) on aerodynamic forces and flow structures generated during clap and fling at Re on the order of 10. We also examine the aerodynamic consequences of scaling bristled wings to Re = 120, relevant to flight of fruit flies. We analyzed published forewing images of 25 species of thrips (Thysanoptera) and found that A M/A T ranged from 14% to 27%, as compared to 11% to 88% previously reported for smaller-sized fairyflies (Hymenoptera). These data were used to develop physical bristled wing models with A M/A T ranging from 15% to 100%, which were tested in a dynamically scaled robotic clap and fling model. At all Re, bristled wings produced slightly lower lift coefficients (C L) when compared to solid wings, but provided significant drag reduction. At Re = 10, largest values of peak lift over peak drag ratios were generated by wing models with A M/A T similar to thrips forewings (15% to 30%). Circulation of the leading edge vortex and trailing edge vortex decreased with decreasing A M/A T during clap and fling at Re = 10. Decreased chordwise circulation near the wing tip, vortex shedding, and interaction between flow structures from clap with those from fling resulted in lowering C L generated via clap and fling at Re = 120 as compared to Re = 10. Clap and fling becomes less beneficial at Re = 120, regardless of the drag reduction provided by bristled wings.