Bats fly differently from birds

Using a wind tunnel, a computerised imaging system and the odd dash of honey, scientists have analysed the highly flexible flap of bats' wings.

Bats evolved flight independently from birds and their wings work differently. The most striking aspect is that on the upstroke, the wings turn upside down to generate more lift.

Writing in the journal Science, the researchers suggest their findings could help in the development of machines which fly by flapping. "This is completely different from birds," said study leader Anders Hedenstrom from Lund University in Sweden. "There is nothing else that is similar to a bat in flight because their wings are so flexible,"

The research took place in a wind tunnel at Lund University, where Professor Hedenstrom has spent more than a decade studying the flight patterns of birds.

The scientists selected Glossophaga soricina, a small species of bat that feeds on nectar. Placed on a net in the wind tunnel near to feeding tubes bearing honey water, the bats would decide from time to time to fly across for a slurp or two of food.