Functional role of airflow-sensing hairs on the bat wing

Abstract

Bat wings are adaptive airfoils that enable demanding flight maneuvers. The bat wing is sparsely covered with sensory hairs, and wing-hair removal results in reduced flight maneuverability. Here, we report for the first time single-neuron responses recorded from primary somatosensory cortex to airflow stimulation that varied in amplitude, duration, and direction. The neurons show high sensitivity to the directionality of airflow and might act as stall detectors.