The control of nocifensive movements in the caterpillar Manduca sexta

In response to a noxious stimulus on the abdomen, caterpillars lunge their head towards the site of stimulation. This nocifensive “strike” behavior is fast (∼0.5 s duration), targeted, and usually unilateral. It is not clear how the fast strike movement is generated and controlled, because caterpillar muscle develops peak force relatively slowly (∼1 s) and the baseline hemolymph pressure is low (