Data from: Propulsion in hexapod locomotion: how do desert ants traverse slopes?

The employment of an alternating tripod gait to traverse uneven terrains is a common characteristic shared among many Hexapoda. Because this could be one specific cause for their ecological success, we examined the alternating tripod gait of the desert ant Cataglyphis fortis together with their ground reaction forces and weight-specific leg impulses for level locomotion and on moderate (±30 deg) and steep (±60 deg) slopes in order to understand mechanical functions of individual legs during inclined locomotion. There were three main findings from the experimental data. (1) The hind legs acted as the main brake (negative weight-specific impulse in the direction of progression) on both the moderate and steep downslopes while the front legs became the main motor (positive weight-specific impulse in the direction of progression) on the steep upslope. In both cases, the primary motor or brake was found to be above the centre of mass. (2) Normalised double support durations were prolonged on steep slopes, which could enhance the effect of lateral shear loading between left and right legs with the presence of direction-dependent attachment structures. (3) The notable directional change in the lateral ground reaction forces between the moderate and steep slopes implied the utilisation of different coordination programs in the extensor–flexor system.Woehrl etal 2017 DATAWoehrl_etal_2017_DATA.zip contains Cataglyphis fortis locomotion data in 1) data.mat (MATLAB Version 8.6.0.267246 R2015b): weight-specific leg impulses at different slopes; ground reaction force; trajectories of petiole, tarsi and neck-thorax joint; body masses; 2) MATLAB script index.m; 3) HTML file with a sample video and figuresWoehrl_etal_2017_DATA.zi