In This Issue
Bat echolocation and luna moth tails
Forewing and tail length measurement protocol for Actias luna (A) and Copiopteryx semiramis (B).
Diversionary tactics, such as false eye spots, are a common predator avoidance mechanism for many prey species, but it is unclear whether species that fall prey to bats engage in the acoustic equivalent of such visual deflection. Jesse Barber et al. (pp. 2812–2816) observed interactions between big brown bats and luna moths to determine whether the moths’ long, spinning hindwing tails serve to disrupt the bats’ echolocation. The authors tethered luna moths using fishing line and removed the tails from half of the moths. High-speed, infrared-sensitive cameras and ultrasonic microphones captured bat behavior and predation success. Luna moths with tails experienced a 47% survival advantage over moths without tails, similar to the survival advantage experienced by moths with bat-detecting ears. Bats targeted the tail section of tailed moths during 55% of interactions, suggesting that the tails may somehow lure the bats to the nonessential appendages. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that long moth tails evolved multiple times in the Saturniidae family of moths, further suggesting that the tails may be advantageous to moth species as a tool for predator avoidance. — J.P.J.
Influenza transmission and surveillance
The incidence of influenza outbreaks around the …
