Tegula (insect anatomy)

A tegula is a small sclerite situated above the base of the costal vein in the wings of various insects such as Orthoptera, Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, Diptera, and Auchenorrhyncha, and attached to the antero-lateral portion of the mesonotum.

[1] It is densely innervated, with sensory bristles, campaniform sensilla, as well as a chordotonal organ in some species.

[2] The tegula in locusts is a model system for studying the role of feedback from mechanoreceptors during movement.

The motor neurons that control the activation of wing elevator muscles are phase-locked to the neurons that innervate the tegula such that when the tegula is electrically stimulated the elevator muscles initiate an upstroke.

[6][7][8] The tegula system is also a model for studying the role of neuromodulation for state-dependent motor control.