Attentiveness to Sensory Stimuli: Central Control in Locusts

Wind-angle changes evoke yaw-correcting deflections of the abdomen in tethered locusts, but only if the wings are beating. In flight, the central neuronal flight motor drives abdominal motoneurons in rhythmic bursts. Wind angle inputs, which are inadequate alone to drive these motoneurons, alter the number of spikes per burst, and the alterations are reciprocal in opposite nerves. Burst frequency and phase are unaffected.