This dataset contains orientation behavior data of moths recorded with the Lightning Flight Simulator. Each file primarily includes record row number, date (year-month-date), and timestamp (precise to the second).
=====================File naming convention======================================
Experiment date (YYYYMMDD) + insect sequence number + stage number.
The stage numbers correspond to the Roman numerals (I, II, III, IV…) used in the main figures of the paper.

The insect sequence number refers to the order in which moths were assigned after tethering stalk installation, and the numbering restarted from 1 on each experimental date. However, because the tethering stalk installation procedure itself (see Materials and Methods in the paper) could affect the moths’ flight performance, some individuals were excluded before completing the full experiment. Common exclusion cases included wing damage or loss, wings are stuck together by glue, antenna loss, weak wing flapping, tilted stalks, death, complete loss of flight stability in the flight simulator, or frequent flight interruption（more than 4 times）.

Therefore, this dataset only includes individuals that successfully completed all five experimental stages. As a result, some sequence numbers are absent, and the first available file on a given date may not start from D1.


=====================Important note on analysis====================================
In the paper, we processed each file in R as follows: starting from the last row, we extracted the preceding 300 seconds of orientation time series based on actual timestamps (not row count) and performed Rayleigh tests to obtain mean direction and vector length (r-value). All summary statistics and figures in the paper were derived from these 300-second windows.

Always select the 300-second window using timestamps rather than row numbers, because the photoelectric encoder occasionally misses data points (fewer than 5 per second). Some recordings were made at 10 Hz, resulting in significantly larger files. The same timestamp-based backward segmentation from the final row applies to per-30s analyses. These time series were further analyzed using Moore’s modified Rayleigh test and other circular statistics.

In the Fall experiments (Fall Exp. Lab, Fall Exp. Control, and Fall Exp. Field), Stage IV involved rotating visual landmarks. Because the entire arena (including the flight simulator mounted on top) was rotated, the recorder itself rotated 180° relative to the fixed landmarks. Consequently, the raw angle data in Stage IV are offset by 180°. After performing Moore’s modified Rayleigh test, add or subtract 180° to the resulting mean direction (i.e., mean ± 180° mod 360°).

This issue was resolved in the Spring Exp. Field experiment by fixing the photoelectric encoder directly to the diffuser at the top. Therefore, angle data from the spring experiment require no correction. If you wish to observe how moths naturally reverse their heading by 180° without angle correction, please analyze Stage IV of the Spring Exp. Field moths.

If you have any further questions regarding the dataset, the R analysis scripts, or the analysis methods, please feel free to contact us.


