How do animals echolocate?

Echolocation is a process where animals produce sound waves that echo so that they can easily move in the dark. One of the most known animals that uses echolocation is the bat. Bats live in dark caves where they sleep at daytime and are more active at night. Since light is very limited at night, bats use echoes and sand waves so they can determine the objects around them.

When the sound they produced bounces an echo back, it means that there is something near them. They can distinguish the sizes of the objects and that help them to catch their prey. They can echolocate an object as thin as a hair strand and hunt as small as a mosquito.

The system of echolocation is vital in species such as bats and whales. Echolocation is a means of communication with the environment whereby an animal emits a sound and listens for echoes of that call from various objects. By this means they can find those objects. It is a biological sonar system that can be used for navigation, for hunting, for avoiding obstacles and for identifying other species.

For whales, this means they can see through muddy waters and hunt squid. The sounds emitted include clicks, whistles and squeaks. Interestingly, some blind humans may find their way more safely by listening to echoes of clicks.