Hollow mandibles: Structural adaptation to high-speed and powerful strike in the trap-jaw ant Odontomachus monticola

Wang, Zixin; Zhan, Yuping; Yang, Yunqiang; Wu, Jianing

doi:10.1016/j.jinsphys.2022.104426

Cited by 6 publications

(18 citation statements)

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“…However, even little differences in stress concentrations might be decisive for the structure’s proper functioning and simultaneous damage risk minimization. The fact that we were able to demonstrate that the material heterogeneity of the F. cunicularia worker mandible has functional relevance suggests that such an approach should be applied to other ant species, especially specialized ants in terms of biting demands, like leaf-cutter and trap-jaw ants, whose bite mechanics was poorly explored besides the relevance of the mandible morphological variation so far (Larabee et al 2018; Klunk et al 2021; Wang et al 2022).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Ant workers use their mandibles to perform roughly all non-reproductive tasks they are responsible for, characterizing the multitasking aspect of this working tool (Zhang et al 2020; Richter & Economo 2023). Although the role of mandibular morphological variation proves to be relevant to bite mechanics (Larabee et al 2018; Klunk et al 2021; Püffel et al 2021; 2023a; Wang et al 2022), we know little about how the mandible cuticle microstructure can influence its mechanical responses to task-related loading demands.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Ants show a relevant interspecific variation in mandible morphology (Sosiak & Barden 2021), whereas intraspecific distinctions are also observed, mainly between worker types (Casadei-Ferreira et al 2021). How morphological disparity reflects ant biting performance was investigated for some ant lineages by the application of computational simulations (Larabee et al 2018; Zhang et al 2020; Klunk et al 2021; Wang et al 2022), as well as through the estimation of relevant mechanical characteristics based on morphological information (Püffel et al 2021; 2023a), providing compelling evidence about how mandibular morphological variation can influence bite mechanics.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A digital representation of the target structure, knowledge about its material properties, and information on its boundary conditions (regions of loading and contact with other structures) are necessary to define an FEA (Rayfield 2007). Regarding insect mandibles, FEA was employed to investigate its mechanical behavior in Odonata (Blanke et al 2017b), beetles (Goyens et al 2015), and ants (Larabee et al 2018; Zhang et al 2020; Klunk et al 2021; Wang et al 2022) considering different behaviors related to biting. However, in those cases, the mandible cuticle was modeled as a homogeneous material, even though it is recognized that the mechanical properties of insect cuticles can vary substantially along the same structure (Schofield et al 2002; 2021; Vincent and Wegst, 2004; Brito et al 2017; Li et al 2020; 2022a; 2022b; Ma et al 2020), with relevant biomechanical effects (Schofield et al 2002; 2021; Rajabi et al 2017; Das et al 2018; Jafarpour et al 2020; Li et al 2020; Matsumura et al 2020; Casey et al 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The present study aims to provide a mechanical and elemental characterization of Formica cunicularia Latreille, 1798, worker mandibles, and test through FEA how the mandibular variation in cuticle E influences its responses to bite loading. Based on the distribution of stress observed in ant mandibles in previous attempts to simulate biting behavior with FEA (Larabee et al 2018; Zhang et al 2020; Klunk et al 2021; Wang et al 2022), we divided the mandible into four regions, namely the masticatory margin, dorsal ( DMA ) and ventral ( VMA ) articulations with the head, and the mandible blade. We hypothesize that the masticatory margin will show the highest value of E and H, followed by the mandibular articulations with the head and the mandible blade.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mechanical and elemental characterization of ant mandibles: consequences for bite mechanics

Klunk,

Heethoff,

Hammel

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Chewing with the mandibles is a food processing behavior observed in most current insect lineages. Mandible morphology has an essential role in biting behavior and food processing capacity. However, the mandible cuticle can have regional differences in its mechanical properties, associated or not with the accumulation of elements that increase cuticle stiffness. The effects of such a heterogeneous distribution of cuticle material properties in the mandible responses to biting loading are still poorly explored in chewing insects. Here we measured the elemental composition and material properties of workers of an ant species, <Formica cunicularia>, and tested the effects of the cuticular variation in Young's modulus (E) under bite-loading with Finite Element Analysis (FEA). We divided worker mandibles into four regions that we expect would vary in elemental composition and material properties, namely the masticatory margin, mandible blade, ventral (VMA), and dorsal (DMA) mandibular articulations with the head. Specifically, we expect the masticatory margin will show higher cuticular hardness (H) and E values, followed by the mandibular joints and the mandible blade. We also predict that such cuticle material properties variation is functionally relevant under bite-loading, changing stress patterns when compared to the mechanical responses of a mandible with a homogeneous distribution of material properties. To measure elemental composition, we used energy disperse X-ray spectroscopy, while H and E were accessed through nanoindentation tests. Mandible mechanical responses to bite-loading were tested with FEA, comparing a mandible with a homogeneous versus a heterogeneous E distribution. As expected, the mandibular regions showed distinct proportions of relevant elements, like Cu and Zn, with the masticatory margin showing the higher levels of those elements, followed by the mandibular articulations with the head and the mandible blade. The same pattern was observed regarding the values of cuticle H and E. When incorporated into FEA, this variation in E effectively changed mandible stress patterns, leading to a higher concentration of stresses in the stiffer mandibular regions, letting the softer mandible blade with relatively lower stress levels. Our results demonstrated the relevance of cuticle heterogeneity in mechanical properties to deal with bite-loading demands and suggest that the accumulation of transition metals such as Cu and Zn has a relevant correlation with such mechanical characteristics of the mandible in this ant species.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Mechanical and elemental characterization of ant mandibles: consequences for bite mechanics

Klunk,

Heethoff,

Hammel

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Mechanical demands of bite in plane head shapes of ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) workers

Klunk

Argenta

Casadei-Ferreira

et al. 2023

Ecology and Evolution

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Food processing can exert significant evolutionary pressures on the morphological evolution of animal appendages. The ant genus Pheidole displays a remarkable degree of morphological differentiation and task specialization among its workers. Notably, there is considerable variation in head shape within worker subcastes of Pheidole, which could affect the stress patterns generated by bite‐related muscle contraction. In this study, we use finite element analysis (FEA) to investigate the effect of the variation in head plane shape in stress patterns, while exploring the morphospace of Pheidole worker head shapes. We hypothesize that the plane head shapes of majors are optimized for dealing with stronger bites. Furthermore, we expect that plane head shapes at the edges of each morphospace would exhibit mechanical limitations that prevent further expansion of the occupied morphospace. We vectorized five head shapes for each Pheidole worker type located at the center and edges of the corresponding morphospaces. We conducted linear static FEA to analyze the stresses generated by mandibular closing muscle contraction. Our findings indicate that plane head shapes of majors exhibit signs of optimization to deal with stronger bites. Stresses are distinctly directed along the lateral margins of the head, following the direction of muscle contraction, whereas the stresses on the plane head shapes of minors tend to concentrate around the mandibular articulations. However, the comparatively higher stress levels observed on majors' plane head shapes suggest a demand for cuticular reinforcement, like increased cuticle thickness or sculpturing pattern. Our results align with the expectations regarding the main colony tasks performed by each worker subcaste, and we find evidence of biomechanical limitations on extreme plane head shapes for majors and minors.

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Morphological and structural characteristics of the elytra reduce impact damage to ladybird beetles

Fu,

Zhang,

et al. 2024

Journal of Insect Physiology

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Hollow mandibles: Structural adaptation to high-speed and powerful strike in the trap-jaw ant Odontomachus monticola

Cited by 6 publications

References 50 publications

Mechanical and elemental characterization of ant mandibles: consequences for bite mechanics

Mechanical and elemental characterization of ant mandibles: consequences for bite mechanics

Mechanical demands of bite in plane head shapes of ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) workers

Morphological and structural characteristics of the elytra reduce impact damage to ladybird beetles

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