First Example Of A Working Cog Wheel Mechanism In A Living Organism Found

From Phys Org, "Functioning 'mechanical gears' seen in nature for the first time:"

This image shows cog wheels connecting the hind legs of the plant hopper, Issus.
Credit: Burrows/Sutton. Source: Phys Org.

a plant-hopping insect found in gardens across Europe - has hind-leg joints with curved cog-like strips of opposing 'teeth' that intermesh, rotating like mechanical gears to synchronise the animal's legs when it launches into a jump.

The finding demonstrates that gear mechanisms previously thought to be solely man-made have an evolutionary precedent. Scientists say this is the "first observation of mechanical gearing in a biological structure".