CURRENT PROJECT

Bats are one of the most diverse groups of mammals, especially in the Neotropics. They have important ecological roles in different ecosystems, for example, many species of bats eat insects and can consume up to their own body weight every night; thus they control insect pests that damage our crops and others that may transmit diseases to humans.

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How they catch prey

To localize and capture their prey, insectivorous bats use echolocation; this means that bats emit high-frequency sounds that humans cannot hear. These sounds travel through the atmosphere and hit a potential prey generating echoes that return to the bat with information about the position of that insect. Insectivorous bats rely on their sensory abilities to obtain food; however, the high-frequency signals are sensible to “atmospheric attenuation”, the process over which sounds become increasingly fainter because of the heat and humidity. In a warming world, this could become big trouble for the bats!

 

Most bats can adapt signal structure according to the characteristics of their natural surroundings; this ability is called vocal plasticity. They usually call louder or at lower frequencies in open spaces so the sound travels longer distances, while they increase call frequency to detect smaller objects in cluttered habitats. Environmental conditions such as temperature and humidity also influence how far the sound travels, affecting prey detection ranges. I test whether bats are capable of modifying their call parameters to counteract sound attenuation and successfully obtain their food when environmental conditions change. They might be able to call louder or decrease frequency to maximize their prey detection ranges.