Can the endemic New Zealand noctuid moth Nyctemera annulata, (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) detect sounds made during predation by bats?

Abstract

One of the most absorbing examples of predator-prey relations is the 'arms race' between echolocating bats and their night-flying prey. An essential initial component of the escalation of this contest was the development, by the potential prey, of a mechanism for detection of the sonar generated by the bat, enabling escape responses. Roeder was among the first to describe in detail the methods used by flying moths to escape from bats. These may be collectively described as a 'startle response', involving a sudden change in behavior, such as a rapid change in flight direction, freezing or diving. More advanced responses involve the ability to 'jam' or confuse the bat's echolocation by emitting bursts of ultrasound.

The experiments reported here were planned to test whether the day-flying moth Nyctemera annulata was capable of responding behaviourally to sonar emitted by native bats, thus showing that they possessed functional ears.