Bat

According to research conducted by the mysterious behavior of bats may be related to hormones. These animals need vision to fly at close range, but the vision at the same time can stop them navigate in space: mice lose their orientation and faced with objects that come across on the way. < br />
Volatile predators move using sight and hearing, they send sound waves and catch the echo that bounces off objects, including from mining. It is known that bats sharper vision at dusk and at night than in the bright light of day since they are nocturnal animals.

For the new research, scientists have found specific obstacles near the abandoned mines in Ontario, Canada, is home to a colony of brown bats. They have to change the lighting - from very dark to bright - and watched as the little brown predators cope with obstacles. As a result, it was found out that the well-lit obstacles mouse is hard to overcome, or just bumped into them.

These obstacles were made of different kinds of fabric: transparent, opaque and reflective light. If the mouse was used in this case, sonar, they have successfully passed all three types of obstacles, however, they do not feel some of them, in particular, a transparent tissue that has made it possible to assume that the animals are increasingly using sight and hearing are not .

Previously conducted similar research. In the past, we found out that mice lacking the ability to see, flew in the window less frequently than those who saw. And now these animals ran into obstacles often installed in a good light.

It is unclear why the mouse use vision to their own detriment. However, the researchers made another discovery: during the experiments the level of hormones in animals varied as varied and statistics downs.

"For us it was a surprise," - said the head of the project Orbach Dara (Dara Orbach), a graduate of the University of Eastern Ontario, Canada (University of Western Ontario, Canada). "We are aware of two phases of training mice to hibernate. During the first period in August mouse gather in large flocks and are looking for a convenient place for wintering. Then there is a tipping point, they dramatically change the eating habits become sleepy and begin to mate. Moreover, changing their behavior: they are now starting to bump into obstacles more in the dark than in the light. Collision frequency and the change in behavior of predators significantly linked. »

"We can not say for sure, but we assume that the mice are impaired if they have this specific need for different periods of time. It may also be related to hormonal and physiological changes in the animals. "