Modulation of acoustic navigation behaviour by spatial learning in the echolocating bat Rhinolophus ferrumequinum nippon.

ABSTRACT: Using echolocation, bats receive acoustic information on their surroundings, which is assumed to help them sophisticatedly navigate complex environments. In this study, to understand spatial learning and acoustic sensing in bats, we investigated how flight and echolocation control changed in Rhinolophus ferrumequinum nippon as they learnt about their surroundings in an obstacle course that they flew through repeatedly. In these experiments, two testing environments (acoustically permeable and acoustically reflective) were prepared using chains and acrylic boards as obstacles to evaluate the interactive effects of spatial learning and flight environments. We found that bats reduced the meandering width of their flights and pulse emissions, and also seemed to reduce their shifts in pulse dir

SUBMITTER: Yamada Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7329871 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature