Fig. 1.

Structural hierarchy of the gecko adhesive system. (A) Macrostructure: ventral view of a tokay gecko (G. gecko) climbing vertical glass. (B) Mesostructure: ventral view of the foot, with adhesive lamellae (scansors) visible as overlapping pads. Note the clean appearance of the adhesive surface. (C) Microstructure: proximal portion of a single lamella, with individual setae in an array visible. (D and E) Nanostructure: single seta with branched structure at upper right, terminating in hundreds of spatular tips.