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S. W. Lawrence, MD @swlawrence.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

AAAS: "These moths smell with their wings." "Like most insects, the wings of tobacco hawk moths (Manduca sexta) are covered in tiny hairs." These microscopic strands help insects taste and stay stable in flight.

"But the tobacco hawk moth’s wing hairs do something researchers haven’t documented in any other insect: they help the animal smell, researchers report this week in the Journal of Experimental Biology." When the scientists looked at the tiny wing hairs with both light and scanning electron microscopy, they found the hairs were porous: a telltale sign of olfactory function.

"Using a technique aptly named 'electrowingography,' the team placed the delicate detached wings between two electrodes and wafted odor molecules representing various chemical classes over them, hoping for a response." Two amines—a group of smelly organic compounds derived from ammonia, called pyrrolidine + piperidine—hit the mark.

"Further testing with artificial intelligence predicted these molecules would fit perfectly into two of the receptors present on the hairs, suggesting that the hairs are fine-tuned to pick up on these particular scents." The two amines are found in pungent, rotting smells, but also in the olfactory bouquet of tobacco plants, the insects’ preferred location for laying eggs.

"As such, their wings may work as accessory noses, helping guide them to these favorite spots."

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