On their own bats can emit up to 100 decibels, say the scientists, and in foraging groups that noise level can reach 140 decibels – the equivalent for humans of jackhammers or jet engines, respectively, for several hours at a stretch.
As anyone who's ever attended a rock concert sans earplugs knows, prolonged exposure to loud sounds can leave hearing diminished once the music stops.
Baseline levels in hand, the scientists exposed the bats to a long period to the kinds of bat sounds they would hear out in the bat world.
Finally, they re-tested the bats' hearing after the noise exposure to see how much sensitivity the creatures had lost.
It turned out that the bats' sensitivity remained largely the same – barely any hearing loss. Imagine a human going to a Metallica concert, without ear protection, and then leaving the show without a hint of "Huh?? What??" hearing loss and you get the idea.
For now, the scientists can only document the bats' ability to dodge deafness. They still don't know how the animals work their magic.
http://news.discovery.com/animals/b...scoveryChannel&utm_medium=social&sf23857227=1
As anyone who's ever attended a rock concert sans earplugs knows, prolonged exposure to loud sounds can leave hearing diminished once the music stops.
Baseline levels in hand, the scientists exposed the bats to a long period to the kinds of bat sounds they would hear out in the bat world.
Finally, they re-tested the bats' hearing after the noise exposure to see how much sensitivity the creatures had lost.
It turned out that the bats' sensitivity remained largely the same – barely any hearing loss. Imagine a human going to a Metallica concert, without ear protection, and then leaving the show without a hint of "Huh?? What??" hearing loss and you get the idea.
For now, the scientists can only document the bats' ability to dodge deafness. They still don't know how the animals work their magic.
http://news.discovery.com/animals/b...scoveryChannel&utm_medium=social&sf23857227=1
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