Biomimetics and bioinspired surfaces: from nature to theory and applications

• Rhainer Guillermo Ferreira,
• Thies H. Büscher,
• Manuela Rebora,
• Poramate Manoonpong,
• Zhendong Dai and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 418–421, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.32

• species. Other possible sources of bioinspiration have been extensively examined by a review on functional surfaces in Hymenoptera, which include bees, wasps, and ants [5]. This diverse group of insects offers a rich array of surfaces that are adapted to realize different tasks, providing insights into

Ultrablack color in velvet ant cuticle

• Vinicius Marques Lopez,
• Wencke Krings,
• Juliana Reis Machado,
• Stanislav Gorb and
• Rhainer Guillermo-Ferreira

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1554–1565, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.122

• of the ultrablack cuticle in Traumatomutilla bifurca, an enigmatic and visually striking species of velvet ants (Hymenoptera, Mutillidae). Using a combination of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), and optical

• contributes to a deeper understanding of ultrablack biological materials and their potential applications in biomimetics. Keywords: animal coloration; biophotonics; Hymenoptera; insects; Mutillidae; superblack; surface; Introduction The phenomenon of highly absorptive colors, also known as ultrablack, has

• reproductive success, offering substantial adaptive advantages within their respective habitats. Velvet ants (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae) are wasps that exhibit a wide range of colors, usually contrasting with black integument. Their coloration is considered to be aposematic, that is, colors that ward off

Hymenoptera and biomimetic surfaces: insights and innovations

• Vinicius Marques Lopez,
• Carlo Polidori and
• Rhainer Guillermo Ferreira

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1333–1352, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.107

• extraordinary adaptations that Hymenoptera (sawflies, wasps, ants, and bees) exhibit on their body surfaces has long intrigued biologists. These adaptations, which enabled the immense success of these insects in a wide range of environments and habitats, include an amazing array of specialized structures

• also offers innovative solutions and technological applications. The order Hymenoptera, which includes sawflies, wasps, ants, and bees, is one of the most diverse groups in the class Insecta, with over 153,000 described species [5] and an estimated 1 million species yet to be discovered [6

• its ovipositor or sting, allowing for efficient prey capture, defense, and oviposition (Figure 1). Hymenoptera exhibit a remarkable variety of biological structures and functions, possessing highly specialized organs and body parts, each adapted to specific ecological roles and lifestyles. These

Functional morphology of cleaning devices in the damselfly Ischnura elegans (Odonata, Coenagrionidae)

• Silvana Piersanti,
• Gianandrea Salerno,
• Wencke Krings,
• Stanislav Gorb and
• Manuela Rebora

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1260–1272, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.102

• ]. In Diptera, tibial grooming combs are found on the ventral apices of the fore tibiae in mosquitoes [22]. In Hymenoptera, one of the fore tibial spurs, called calcar, is highly modified for antennal grooming, and usually the basitarsus is also specialized for this purpose; the two parts acting

• enhance our understanding of different insect behavior and evolution (e.g., [32] for Mantodea and [26] for Hymenoptera). Moreover, they can represent the starting point to develop useful biomimetic tools [33]. Studies on grooming devices in Paleoptera (Odonata and Ephemeroptera) are scarce. Except for an

• specialized piercing-sucking or siphoning mouthparts, such as Hemiptera, Diptera and Lepidoptera, except the mandibulate archaic moth family Micropterigidae. Hemiptera use their forelegs to scrape their antennae, transferring debris onto the surrounding surface [20]. In contrast, many Hymenoptera employ a

Interaction between honeybee mandibles and propolis

• Leonie Saccardi,
• Franz Brümmer,
• Jonas Schiebl,
• Oliver Schwarz,
• Alexander Kovalev and
• Stanislav Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 958–974, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.84

• chemistry, surface microstructures, an easy-to-break solid layer preventing strong bonding, or a fluid layer providing cohesion failure. Resin adhesion on stingless bees One example for possibly anti-adhesive surfaces that is especially relevant to this work, are Bornean stingless bees (Hymenoptera

Physical constraints lead to parallel evolution of micro- and nanostructures of animal adhesive pads: a review

• Thies H. Büscher and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 725–743, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.57

• most groups of insects, for example, in Orthoptera [126][127][128][129][130][131][132][133], Siphonaptera [1], Phthiraptera [1][134], Mantodea [1][135], Hymenoptera [1][136][137][138][139][140][141][142][143][144][145][146][147][148], Embioptera [109][149][150], Ephemeroptera, in form of a claw pad, [1

• ., the pulvilli of flies [60] or the plantulae of Hymenoptera [146]) which are hairy in some taxa and smooth in others. Similar structures in different orders (e.g., the pulvilli of flies and true bugs [1][60]) or the plantulae in Hymenoptera (e.g., [172]) and euplantulae in other insects (e.g., [173

Functional diversity of resilin in Arthropoda

• Jan Michels,
• Esther Appel and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1241–1259, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.115

• (1) the storage of kinetic energy at maximum wing deflection, for example during the upstroke when the wing hinge ligament is stretched, and (2) wing acceleration during the downstroke by elastic recoil [5][28][82]. In other insects, such as Lepidoptera, some Coleoptera and some Hymenoptera, these