The role of leg touchdown for the control of locomotor activity in the walking stick insect

Abstract

Much is known on how select sensory feedback contributes to the activation of different motoneuron pools in the locomotor control system of stick insects. However, even though activation of the stance phase muscles depressor trochanteris, retractor unguis, flexor tibiae and retractor coxae is correlated with the touchdown of the leg, the potential sensory basis of this correlation or its connection to burst intensity remains unknown. In our experiments, we are using a trap door setup to investigate how ground contact contributes to stance phase muscle activation and burst intensity in different stick insect species, and which afferent input is involved in the respective changes. While the magnitude of activation is changed in all of the above stance phase muscles, only the timing of the flexor tibiae muscle is changed if the animal unexpectedly steps into a hole. Individual and combined ablation of different force sensors on the leg demonstrated influence from femoral campaniform sensilla on flexor muscle timing, causing a significant increase in the latencies during control and air steps. Our results show that specific load feedback signals determine the timing of flexor tibiae activation at the swing-to-stance transition in stepping stick insects, but that additional feedback may also be involved in flexor muscle activation during stick insect locomotion. With respect to timing, all other investigated stance phase muscles appear to be under sensory control other than that elicited through touchdown.