Bats sing love ballads while matingAugust 26th, 2009 WASHINGTON - It's not just humans who sing love ballads to woo their partners, for bats too sing when they indulge in sex, according to a new study. Researchers at Texas A and M University and the University of Texas at Austin are believed to be the first to decode the mysterious love sounds made by the winged creatures.
World's largest bats on the verge of extinction in Peninsular Malaysia due to huntingAugust 26th, 2009 WASHINGTON - The world's largest species of fruit bat, Pteropus vampyrus, could be driven to extinction in Peninsular Malaysia at the current hunting rate, scientists have warned. They say that around 22,000 of these bats, also known as "large flying fox", are legally hunted each year in Peninsular Malaysia, a level that is unsustainable based on their estimates of the number of bats in the country.
How 'kinky' flying foxes maintain their 'harem' of choosy femalesAugust 20th, 2009 LONDON - A team of German scientists has found the secret of sexual success for flying foxes. They found that males with relatively high levels of testosterone in their blood are better able to maintain their 'harem' of choosy females.
Ugly bats use mighty jaws to tear tough hidesAugust 15th, 2009 LONDON - In a new research, scientists have discovered that the oddly-shaped skulls of the wrinkle-faced bat include jaws that are more powerful than not just other fruit bats but also much larger predatory bats, which need to be able to sink their teeth into tough hides. With a strangely naked face covered in skin flaps and a wide, foreshortened skull, the head of the rarely seen, fruit-eating, wrinkle-faced bat (has been an enigma to biologists for a long time.
Micro robo flies can save up to 50 percent energy if they fly like helicoptersAugust 8th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study has shown that micro flying robots that hover like flies can save up to 50 percent energy if they swing an insect wing around like a helicopter blade. Previously, engineers have long been stymied in their attempts to fabricate micro aerial robots that can match the amazing flight capabilities of nature's most advanced flying insects - flies.
Kiwi walking bat took marching orders from 20-mln-yr-old ancestorAugust 8th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new fossil-bat discovery has revealed that a walking bat in New Zealand took its marching orders from a 20-mln-yr-old ancestor, which upends a theory that the lesser short-tailed bat evolved its walking preference independently. Since the bat's native habitat lacks predators, researchers reasoned that-much like flightless birds on isolated islands-the bat had adapted to its safer surroundings in part by walking.
Strong flight muscles give bar-headed geese energy to soar above the HimalayasJuly 29th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study has determined that a higher density of blood vessels and other unique physiological features in the flight muscles of bar-headed geese allow them to assert energy at high altitudes like the Himalayas. Named for the dark stripes on the backs of their heads, bar-headed geese are native to South and Central Asia.
Moths can jam bat sonar by using ultrasound blastsJuly 18th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study has found out that moths can use ultrasound blasts to disrupt sonar from predatory bats, thus evading detection by the flying mammals. Bats emit high-pitched cries, then listen as the sound waves bounce off nearby objects-allowing the bats to find and eat tiny insects in the dark, among other things.
Robo-bats to be next eyes in the skyJuly 8th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Tiny flying machines can survey anything from indoors to collapsed buildings. Now researchers are mimicking nature's small flyers - and developing robotic bats that offer increased manoeuvrability and performance.
Recession forces Bellingham Herald to cut more employees, expensesJune 9th, 2009 Bellingham Herald cutting jobs, requiring furloughBELLINGHAM, Wash. — Employees at The Bellingham Herald in Washington state will have to take a one-week unpaid furlough this summer to help the newspaper cut expenses.
Bats identify other bats by soundJune 5th, 2009 LONDON - Bats can recognise one another by the nature of their sounds, says a new study carried out in Germany. The study, conducted by the University of Tubingen, explains how bats use echolocation for more than just finding out where they are.
Echolocation helps bats recognize each otherJune 5th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Bats use echolocation not only to navigate their surroundings also to recognize each other, a study has found. The study, by researchers at the University of Tuebingen, Germany, and the University of Applied Sciences in Konstanz, Germany, explains how bats use echolocation for more than just spatial knowledge.
Want to look underwater? Use robo-fishMay 29th, 2009 SYDNEY - A researcher has developed the first robo-fish Wanda that moves like its natural counterparts and navigates underwater, conducting inspections within confined spaces. Researcher Scott McGovern of the University of Wollongong created Wanda (wireless aquatic navigator for detection and analysis) seeking out targeted objects.
Federal Trade Commission suing companies to halt auto warranty 'robo-calls'May 14th, 2009 FTC suing companies to halt warranty 'robo-calls'WASHINGTON — Federal regulators are filing suits against several companies they say are behind a national wave of spam "robo-calls" that warn people their auto warranties are expiring and offer new service plans. The Federal Trade Commission says it has asked a federal court in Chicago to halt the illegal telemarketing campaign of "Your Car Warranty Has Expired." Officials say as many as 1 billion of the nuisance calls have been made to Americans.
FTC to bring action against companies 'robo-calling' consumers on auto warrantiesMay 12th, 2009 Hang up: warranty 'robo-calls' get FTC probeWASHINGTON — Federal regulators are close to filing lawsuits against companies behind a national wave of spam "robo-calls" that warn people their auto warranties are about to expire and offer new service plans, two senators said Tuesday. The Federal Trade Commission has started investigations into several companies involved in the deceptive calls, and the agency expects to bring cases against them within days, Sens.
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