Insectivorous bats form mobile sensory networks to optimize prey localization: The case of the common noctule bat.

ABSTRACT: Animals that depend on ephemeral, patchily distributed prey often use public information to locate resource patches. The use of public information can lead to the aggregation of foragers at prey patches, a mechanism known as local enhancement. However, when ephemeral resources are distributed over large areas, foragers may also need to increase search efficiency, and thus apply social strategies when sampling the landscape. While sensory networks of visually oriented animals have already been confirmed, we lack an understanding of how acoustic eavesdropping adds to the formation of sensory networks. Here we radio-tracked a total of 81 aerial-hawking bats at very high spatiotemporal resolution during five sessions over 3 y, recording up to 19 individuals simultaneously. Analyses of interact

SUBMITTER: Roeleke M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9388074 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature