Butterflies regulate wing temperatures using radiative cooling

Cheng-Chia Tsai; Norman Nan Shi; Crystal Ren; Julianne Pelaez; Gary D. Bernard; Nanfang Yu; Naomi Pierce

doi:10.1117/12.2274297

6 September 2017 Butterflies regulate wing temperatures using radiative cooling

Cheng-Chia Tsai, Norman Nan Shi, Crystal Ren, Julianne Pelaez, Gary D. Bernard, Nanfang Yu, Naomi Pierce

Proceedings Volume 10367, Light in Nature VI; 103670A (2017) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2274297
Event: SPIE Optical Engineering + Applications, 2017, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

Butterfly wings are live organs embedded with multiple sensory neurons and, in some species, with pheromoneproducing cells. The proper function of butterfly wings demands a suitable temperature range, but the wings can overheat quickly in the sun due to their small thermal capacity. We developed an infrared technique to map butterfly wing temperatures and discovered that despite the wings’ diverse visible colors, regions of wings that contain live cells are the coolest, resulting from the thickness of the wings and scale nanostructures. We also demonstrated that butterflies use behavioral traits to prevent overheating of their wings.

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Citation Download Citation

Cheng-Chia Tsai, Norman Nan Shi, Crystal Ren, Julianne Pelaez, Gary D. Bernard, Nanfang Yu, and Naomi Pierce "Butterflies regulate wing temperatures using radiative cooling", Proc. SPIE 10367, Light in Nature VI, 103670A (6 September 2017); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2274297

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