ArticleProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2024
Unifying fluidic excretion across life from cicadas to elephants.
Article in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed.
- Dynamic coupling enables impulsive ejection in a hydrogel catapult.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Soft microgel networks stabilize and extend nozzle-free water jets.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Bioinspired wettability boundary stabilizes water sloshing.Science advances · 2025Article
- Microbiomes of 2024's Periodical Cicada Brood XIII Vary By Species and Location.Microbial ecology · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Can insects weighing mere grams challenge our current understanding of fluid dynamics in urination, jetting fluids like their larger mammalian counterparts? Current fluid urination models, predominantly formulated for mammals, suggest that jetting is confined to animals over 3 kg, owing to viscous and surface tension constraints at microscales. Our findings defy this paradigm by demonstrating that cicadas-weighing just 2 g-possess the capability for jetting fluids through remarkably small orifices. Using dimensional analysis, we introduce a unifying fluid dynamics scaling framework that accommodates a broad range of taxa, from surface-tension-dominated insects to inertia and gravity-reliant mammals. This study not only refines our understanding of fluid excretion across various species but also highlights its potential relevance in diverse fields such as ecology, evolutionary biology, and biofluid dynamics.
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Registered trials
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