Batty Calls: Two-Way Communication

To most, hearing bats screeching at each other sounds a lot like a bunch of kids learning how to play new instruments…and doing so very loudly. But to the trained researcher, a bat’s scream has much more to it and conveys more information than ever thought before.
A group of scientists from Tel Aviv University captured 22 Egyptian fruit bats and observed them visually and audibly over the course of two months to decipher what all the yelling was about.
Yossi Yovel, the lead researcher, said that the team “wanted to know how much information was actually conveyed” by the screeching and screaming.
Bats are known for their loud communication and up until now, many thought the screams were relatively simple in their meanings. However, the team’s research published in the journal Scientific Reports found that the calls are incredibly complex and unique to each bat.