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Science 29 July 1977:
Vol. 197. no. 4302, pp. 479 - 482
DOI: 10.1126/science.197.4302.479
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Articles

Compressional and Surface Waves in Sand: Used by Desert Scorpions to Locate Prey

PHILIP H. BROWNELL 1

1 Department of Biology, University of California, Riverside 92507

Loose sand conducts compressional and surface (Rayleigh) waves at relatively low velocities (95 to 120 meters per second and 40 to 50 meters per second, respectively) compared to other natural substrates. For frequencies between 1 and 5 kilohertz, the specific attenuation factor, Q, for sand is 18. Compound slit sensilla on basitarsal leg segments of sand-dwelling scorpions respond to surface waves generated by movements of insects as far as 50 centimeters away, and tarsal sensory hairs respond to higher-frequency (mostly compressional-wave) components of the signal.

Submitted on May 24, 1976
Revised on November 30, 1976


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