Bats create 'silent frequency zones' to detect prey in noisy flight, researchers reveal

Sound plays an important role for many animals, helping them navigate and hunt. Echolocation is the ability of animals like bats and dolphins to locate objects by emitting sound waves and interpreting the returning echoes. But detecting meaningful information in a noisy environment poses a major challenge for them. Bats operate by identifying weak prey echoes among complex background sounds generated by surrounding objects and their own movement during flight. To overcome this issue, these bats have evolved a highly sophisticated echo detection system that uses ultrasonic voices to perceive their surroundings with remarkable precision.