Topic: turbulent plumes

Insects navigate to odor sources by combining information from the intensity, timing, and spatial distribution of odor encounters. One key information stream is the difference in odor signals between the antennae. This bilaterally-resolved information enables gradient sensing, helping navigation in simple environments like static odor ribbons. In turbulent plumes, however, gradients are of limited use since they are hard to resolve and carry little information about the source location. Here, we have discovered a distinct role for bilateral odor sensing—detecting the direction of motion of od