'Zen' bats hit their target by not aiming at it
Friday, February 5, 2010 - 00:21
in Biology & Nature
New research shows Egyptian fruit bats find a target by NOT aiming their guiding sonar directly at it. Instead, they alternately point the sound beam to either side of the target. The new findings suggest that this strategy optimizes the bats' ability to pinpoint the location of a target, but also makes it harder for them to detect a target in the first place.