Stacey Combes
Assistant Professor of Organismic & Evolutionary Biology
E-mail:
Office: 552B MCZ; Concord Field Station
Lab Website: http://www.oeb.harvard.edu/faculty/combes
My research strives to link the worlds of field-based insect flight ecology with lab-based insect flight mechanics to understand the physical foundation of diverse, natural flight behaviors. I focus on flight performance at the level of the whole organism, asking both how flapping wings interact physically with the fluid surrounding them, as well as how insects use other appendages to control the way forces act upon the body. I have developed systems in which it is possible to study freely flying insects responding to natural stimuli in a manner that is both repeatable and quantifiable, working with wild insects in their natural habitats whenever possible. I draw on a wide variety of experimental and theoretical techniques from both biology and engineering to answer questions at the interface of flight biomechanics and behavioral ecology.
Recent Publications
Combes, SA, TL Daniel, 2005. Flexural stiffness in insect wings: Effects of wing venation and stiffness distribution on passive wing bending. American Entomologist, Spring 2005: 42-44.
Combes, SA, TL Daniel, 2003. Flexural stiffness in insect wings. I. Scaling and the influence of wing venation. Journal of Experimental Biology 206(17): 2979-2987.
Combes, SA, TL Daniel, 2003. Flexural stiffness in insect wings. II. Spatial distribution and dynamic wing bending. Journal of Experimental Biology 206(17): 2989-2997.
Combes, SA, TL Daniel, 2003. Into thin air: Contributions of aerodynamic and inertial-elastic forces to wing bending in the hawkmoth Manduca sexta. Journal of Experimental Biology 206(17): 2999-3006.
Combes, SA, TL Daniel, 2002. Flexing wings and fins: bending by inertial or fluid-dynamic forces? Integrative and Comparative Biology 42(5): 1044-1049.
Combes, SA, TL Daniel, 2001. Shape, flapping and flexion: Wing and fin design for forward flight. Journal of Experimental Biology 204(12): 2073- 2085.
