雄性體型較大的囊翼蝙蝠（大銀線蝠）會使用一首歌曲來吸引異性,，并用另一首歌來保衛(wèi)自己的領地。
它們也會通過發(fā)出聲音來尋找食物——昆蟲飛時會發(fā)出跳動的聲波,，這種行為也就是我們通常所說的回聲定位能力,。
但是,，研究人員尚不清楚這些聲音是否也能傳播一些社會訊息，就像人們能夠從一個人的聲音推斷出他（她）的性別一樣,，即使他或她只是買了一大杯加入無糖香草漿的拿鐵咖啡。
為此,，科學家捕獲了幾只蝙蝠,，通過測量它們的前肢,，判定其性別，并將微小的塑料帶固定到它們身上,。
之后,，科學家放飛了它們,，并記錄下了它們的叫聲,。通過研究，科學家發(fā)現(xiàn),，雌性蝙蝠的回聲定位聲波比生活在附近的雄性蝙蝠偏高和短，雖然雌性蝙蝠的體型更大,。另外，來自不同地區(qū)的蝙蝠叫聲也不盡相同,。
該研究小組將相關研究成果在線發(fā)表于英國《皇家學會學報B》上,。
此外,，研究人員還在一個巢穴附近釋放了單個的雄性蝙蝠和雌性蝙蝠，而此時這個巢穴的雄性蝙蝠已經回巢,?？茖W家發(fā)現(xiàn),，當一只雄性蝙蝠降落時，其他雄性蝙蝠會發(fā)出嚎叫聲,，并唱起領地歌謠。但當一只雌性蝙蝠飛來時,，雄性蝙蝠會唱起求愛歌謠。（生物谷Bioon.com）
doi: 10.1098/rspb.2012.1995
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Bat echolocation calls facilitate social communication
Mirjam Knornschild, Kirsten Jung, Martina Nagy, Markus Metz and Elisabeth Kalko
Bat echolocation is primarily used for orientation and foraging but also holds great potential for social communication. The communicative function of echolocation calls is still largely unstudied, especially in the wild. Eavesdropping on vocal signatures encoding social information in echolocation calls has not, to our knowledge, been studied in free-living bats so far. We analysed echolocation calls of the polygynous bat Saccopteryx bilineata and found pronounced vocal signatures encoding sex and individual identity. We showed experimentally that free-living males discriminate approaching male and female conspecifics solely based on their echolocation calls. Males always produced aggressive vocalizations when hearing male echolocation calls and courtship vocalizations when hearing female echolocation calls; hence, they responded with complex social vocalizations in the appropriate social context. Our study demonstrates that social information encoded in bat echolocation calls plays a crucial and hitherto underestimated role for eavesdropping conspecifics and thus facilitates social communication in a highly mobile nocturnal mammal.
