Cockroach locomotion study. Cockroach (Blaberus discoidalis) attached to a candle,runs over a freely rotating polystyrene ball,known as a kugel. A high speed camera tracks the leg movements for locomotion analysis. Cockroaches are the fastest land animals,able to run at 50 body lengths per second. Like other multi-legged animals,cockroach legs move together in groups (two legs from one side,one leg on the other). Each group forms a spring-loaded tripod. When one tripod touches the ground,the other alternates by lifting up,producing gait similar to bipedal animals. Photographed at the PolyPEDAL Lab,University of California,Berkeley,USA |