Scientists Record a Bat Catching Birds Mid-Flight!
The Greater Noctule Bat
Post Author- Ellis Nolan
Bats, birds, screeches, oh my! In a reverse-Hitchcock twist, a new study reveals that a species of European bat catches and eats birds mid-flight.
The species of bat in question is the greater noctule, the largest known bat in Europe. Like many bats, the greater noctule makes up for its lacking eyesight in its olfactory and auditory abilities. While flying, usually at night or dusk, it emits high frequency sounds, imperceptible to most animals, that bounce off of surfaces and back to the bat’s highly attuned ears, allowing it to attack with precision even in low-light environments.
Where the greater noctule differs from other bats is its prey. Researchers have found feathers in the noctules’ droppings, suggesting not only that they hunt birds, but that the bats consume their prey while still in flight. This is particularly impressive since the birds hunted by the greater noctules weigh half as much as the bats themselves.
Listen to the greater noctule catch a European robin!
In order to study the hunting techniques of the greater noctule, the researchers created “backpacks” (bat-packs?), a small, lightweight collection of devices that they attached to the bats. These devices included accelerometers to measure the bat’s velocity, as well as microphones to capture the sounds of the bats on the hunt.
What their devices captured was truly shocking. In one recording, you can hear the backpacked bat swoop down at high speed, then after a series of whooshes, the terror-cry of a European robin, and finally, a sound that needs no description: the bat chewing.
The researchers believe this audio evidence, along with information from other instruments in the backpacks, confirms the bats consume their prey while flying. This is no small feat; imagine a 180 pound person catching a 90 pound weight while sprinting. While their habits are certainly macabre, greater noctules are categorized as a species vulnerable to becoming endangered, and thus, understanding them is crucial to protecting them and their environments.
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