洛克菲勒大学神经科学家Vanessa Ruta领导的团队发现，果蝇在追踪气味源头时采用的导航策略远比传统科学认知复杂得多[1]。长期以来，科学界普遍认为昆虫通过称为"surge and cast"的本能反射机制解决气味追踪问题：感知到气味后逆风飞行直到气味消失，再通过左右摇摆尝试重新捕捉[1]。但Ruta团队的研究证明，果蝇实际上采用了远更先进的方法来应对这一挑战[1]。
研究团队利用天线上的嗅觉神经元来追踪果蝇如何感知气味羽流，揭示了这些昆虫在混乱的气味环境中的真实导航机制[1]。正如研究人员所指出的，这项研究的难点在于"气味是无形的，通常由湍流携带，无法准确知道动物在某一时刻闻到什么"[1]。这一发现表明果蝇并非仅依赖简单的本能反射，而是具有更高级的嗅觉导航能力[1]。
Researchers at Rockefeller University have discovered that fruit flies employ far more complex navigation mechanisms than previously understood when tracking odor sources. Led by neuroscientist Vanessa Ruta, the team found that fruit flies move beyond the simple "surge and cast" model—a traditional framework suggesting insects rely on instinctive reflexes, flying upwind when detecting a smell until it disappears, then sweeping left and right to relocate the scent [1].
The study reveals that fruit flies perceive odor plumes through olfactory neurons on their antennae and utilize more advanced mechanisms to pursue their target amid chaotic smelling environments [1]. One of the key challenges in understanding this process lies in the nature of odor itself: "smell is invisible and typically carried by turbulence, making it impossible to know precisely what an animal is detecting at any given moment," according to the research team [1].