Hi bigjohn,
Interesting question! And one I’m sure people do wonder about. The
thing is, although we call the sensory appendages of insects ANTENNAE,
they really don’t function like a radio or television antenna, picking
up radio waves. The antennas of most insects function as receptors for
ODOR. Yes, they smell with their antenna. (I guess really we should
have called them noses!).
In fact, many insects “hear” sound waves with receptors located on
other parts of their bodies, such as their legs or abdomens, not with
their antenna.
So in answer to your question, no, an insect’s antenna would not be
worried or aggravated by radio waves.
Here is some further information.
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“ Insects - in contrast to vertebrates - have "everted noses", the
antennae, which are studded with tens of thousands of tiny hairs and
pegs. Each of these sensilla comprises the sensory processes of but a
few olfactory receptor neurons. This partitioning and the
accessibility of single receptor cells are two of the many advantages
that insects offer for studies of the sense of smell.”
http://www.mpi-seewiesen.mpg.de/~kaisslin/pr1.html
---------------------
INSECT SENSES
Antennae
An insect’s sense of smell is keener than anything we can imagine.
They smell primarily with their antennae. Segmented, flexible and
covered with many tiny hairs, antennae can come in many shapes and
sizes. They all function to detect chemical cues in the air
Sound
Many insects can emit sounds by rubbing their appendages together or
vibrating a membrane. Have you ever heard a cricket chirp or a cicada
sing on a summer night? Insects “hear” these sounds as membranes
vibrate in response to sound waves, however these membranes are not
located in ears, but on the abdomen or forelegs.
Insect Senses
http://learn.tnaqua.org/Learn/modules/insect_field.asp
-----------------------------
Insect antennae are exterior sensory structures that aid these tiny
creatures in navigating through their environment in search of food
and mates. Some of the more complex antennae are adapted to increase
the surface area available to sensory cells that locate pheromones and
other molecules related to the activities of insects.
http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/techniques/darkfieldgallery/mortantenna.html
--------------------------
Insect Antenna
http://www.arthropod.net/reference/insect_anatomy_antenna.htm
-----------------------
Introducing insects
http://collections.ic.gc.ca/biodiversity/about_insects_senses.html
---------------------
Recent laboratory research has shown that various networks of nerve
cells in the brain develop high-frequency oscillations when an
insect's antennae are stimulated with odor.
http://www.iastate.edu/news/releases/2001/mar/bugsmell.shtml
-----------------------
Glad I could answer your question!
-K~
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