Bats’ extraordinary flying skills revealed

WHEN IT COMES to airborne acrobatics there are few animals that can rival the agility of bats. However, quite how they achieve this has so far been a riddle. Now, a team at Johns Hopkins
University think they have the answer. Touch-sensitive cells clustered around tiny hairs that cover the bats’ wings send information about airflow directly to their brains, allowing them to make split- second adjustments in mid-flight.

“Until now, no one had investigated the sensors on the bat’s wing, which allow it to serve as more than a propeller, a flipper, an airplane wing or any simple airfoil,” said researcher Cynthia F Moss. “These findings can inform more broadly how organisms use touch to guide movement.”

The team studied the big brown bat, a common species found throughout North America that’s able to fly at speeds up to 32km/h (20mph). They found that the evolutionary process which allowed
bats to form wings resulted in unusual tactile circuitry that not only enhances control during flight,
but also allows bats to use their wings to climb, cradle their young and capture insects.

They also found that the pattern of nerves in the bats’ wings is different from that of other mammals. Neurones within the wings’ skin connect not only to the area in the animals’ spinal cords that is typically associated with forelimbs, but also to an area normally connected to the trunk. The findings lay the groundwork for understanding how bats use sensory information to fly with incredible precision in the dark and catch prey in mid-air. Looking further forward, the new knowledge could even lead to engineers one day being able to design aircraft that can manoeuvre around obstacles by adjusting to air turbulence.