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Hair in the air: how bats stay aloft

Bats are the only mammals capable of powered flight, and they perform impressive aerial maneuvers like tight turns, hovering, and perching upside down. The key to this flight: hairs.

The bat wing is made of a membrane covered with stiff, microscopically small, domed hairs. New research shows that receptors on these hairs give the bats feedback about how well they’re flying by monitoring speed and airflow conditions.

Read more at Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

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