Neuronal circuits controlling flight in the locust: how sensory information is processed for control

Animals abstract relevant information from a profusion of diverse stimuli and then organize appropriate behavioral responses. How is this done? A partial answer comes from studies on the flight steering system of the locust where multiple sensory systems have been shown to interact and shape the response properties of deviationspecific detector neurons. These sensory detector neurons project to a population of segmental premotor interneurons, which, gated by the flight central oscillator, then phase-couple and distribute integrated sensorimotor information to specific flight motoneurons, thus producing the motor program modifications which underly corrective steering responses.