Philippine Tarsier emits high-frequency calls like bats

Philippine Tarsier emits high-frequency calls like bats A team of scientists has recently discovered that the Philippine tarsier (Tarsius syrichta) just like bats, can communicate through pure ultrasound. It issues calls that are so high-pitched, that
human ears can’t perceive. Marissa Ramiser, an evolutionary biologist at the Humboldt State University California, noted that the tarsiers were previously considered as nocturnal creatures. Turns out, that the world’s smallest primates are actually capable
of generating screams so high, that no one can hear. Human ears can hear up to 20 kHz. The tarsier surpasses our ears by 91 kHz and can cry out at 70-kHz range. This means, the tarsiers’ hearing capabilities are similar to those of bats and far more superior
to any other primate. T.syrichta is the smallest primate on earth and is quite common in the Philippine islands. A fully mature tarsier is of the size of a human fist. They have a strong night vision and have giant eyes. They resemble lemurs and the lorises
in many ways. Tarsiers are difficult test subjects, since they are endangered and don’t respond well to captivity. Ramsier and her colleagues captured six tarsiers on the island of Mindanao and placed each in a sound-dampening chamber, in which they were exposed
to noises of varying frequencies. Electrodes were placed on their skulls to measure the responses of their brains. After the tests were completed, the tarsiers were released into their natural habitat. To find out if these creatures could make ultrasonic noises,
the researchers recorded them on the islands of Bohol and Leyte. Sharon Gursky-Doyen, a Texas A&M anthropologist, noticed that the animals opened their mouths and she couldn’t hear their cries. She took a bat detector and was able to record some vocalizations.
35 wild tarsiers were captured by the researchers. Using microphones, they discovered that the animals cried out in ultrasound. On February 7, 2012, these results were published in the journal Biology Letters. Other primates do have ultrasonic elements in
their calls, but the dominant frequencies are audible to humans. The other mammals that use ultrasonic communication are whales, dolphins, bats, rodents, and domestic cats. By communicating this way, tarsiers may be able to keep predators from hearing them.
They might also use their hearing skills to locate insects. It’s doubtful that tarsiers can use echolocation like bats.

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Posted by Taimoor Tariq on Feb 9 2012. Filed under Sci-Tech. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry