The acoustics of flapping flight in birds and bats; a preliminary analysis


Meeting Abstract

S6-2  Sunday, Jan. 5 08:00 – 08:30  The acoustics of flapping flight in birds and bats; a preliminary analysis BOONMAN, ARJAN*; EITAN, OFRI; YOVEL , YOSSI; University of Tel Aviv arjan.boonman@gmx.net

Most studies on the acoustics of bird flight focus on gliding- and not on flapping flight. Here we present preliminary acoustic data on the sound of wing-flapping in a number of bat- and bird species. We did not record the acoustics of the wing-beat rate itself but of the acoustic impulses created by each individual flap of the wing. In this context we show that during take-off, when barn owls must flap strongly to create sufficient lift, the sounds of wing-flaps are clearly audible. We also present a case of specialized ‘wing-claps’ used by fruit bats in the Old World. The exact mechanism of creating each clap is still unknown, but we proved these claps to be used in a form of rudimentary echolocation to detect large structures.

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