Survival value of Slifer's Patches for locusts at a high temperature

Normal male locusts with functional Slifer's Patches had longer effective activity and overall survival times than others with covered abdominal patches, at 55°C in dry air but not in wet air. It is concluded that in hot, dry conditions the patches constitute an emergency cooling system which aids survival by localised rapid transpiration. It is suggested that selective cooling of vulnerable organs is more important than the whole-body temperature. Evaporation from other parts of the body does not contribute significantly to the survival time. Even above the transition temperature of the normal cuticle, the patches may be the only important site of evaporative cooling because of their specialisation for rapid transmission of water through the integument.