Abstract:
Echolocation in bats depends upon the dynamic interplay between auditory information processing and adaptive motor control. The bat produces ultrasonic vocalizations and uses information contained in the returning echoes to determine the direction and distance of objects in space. With this acoustic information, the bat builds a three-dimensional auditory representation of the world. The timing, frequency content, duration and intensity of echolocation signals used to ensonify the environment directly impact the information available to the bat's acoustic imaging system. In turn, the bat's auditory representation of the environment guides its actions--ear movements, head aim, flight path, and the features of subsequent sonar vocalizations. My talk will emphasize the importance of the bat's vocal-motor system to spatial orientation by sonar. I will summarize our research findings from behavioral studies of echolocating bats engaged in natural tasks and from neurophysiological studies of the bat superior colliculus and hippocampus, brain structures implicated in sensorimotor integration, orientation and spatial memory.