UA Researchers Find Geckos More Grippy When the Weather Gets Sticky

Akron, Ohio, May 14, 2008 ― University of Akron researchers studying geckos used to think that temperature and humidity would have little effect on gecko traction; however, they found, for example, that the little lizards become positively clingy in high humidity.

The team of five UA researchers studying gecko adhesion has published the paper, “Sticky Gecko Feet: The Role of Temperature and Humidity” in PLoS ONE, an interactive, open-access, online journal for peer-reviewed scientific and medical research.

The UA authors are Dr. Peter Niewiarowski, professor of biology; Stephanie Lopez, graduate student in biology; Liehui Ge, graduate assistant, and Emily Hagan, undergraduate student, both in polymer science; and gecko guru Dr. Ali Dhinojwala, professor of polymer science. Dhinojwala has been studying gecko grip ever since he was a child watching them climb walls and ceilings in his native India.

“We tested the effect of temperature and humidity on the ability of geckos to stick to glass, expecting that neither would have a major role,” says Niewiarowski. “Surprisingly, we found that both temperature and humidity variation affect their ability to cling to glass.

“For example, under very humid conditions, geckos stick with twice the force compared to dry conditions at low temperatures. At high temperatures, geckos stick comparatively poorly and the humidity level is less important.

“Previous work by other labs using isolated setae suggested that clinging ability should be insensitive to variation in both temperature and humidity. Our work with live geckos indicates a need to further explore the role of temperature and humidity on adhesion to different surfaces in both natural (geckos) and synthetic materials.”

The paper is on the PLoS ONE Website at http://www.plosone.org/doi/pone.0002192.

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