1. Response parameters of S-segment neurones of the FM bat Myotis lucifugus were measured as a sound was delivered from different azimuthal angles around the animal's head. 2. The response parameters investigated were the amplitude and threshold of the evoked potential (N3) of the S-segment, together with the threshold, latency and number of impulses (per stimulus pulse) of single units. 3. All the neurones studied had their lowest thresholds either at 20-40 degrees contralateral, or 20-40 degrees ipsilateral or at the front (0 degrees). 4. The amplitude of the sound affected the relationship between stimulus direction and the amplitude of a non-monotonic N3, and the relationship between stimulus direction and the number of impulses of a non-monotonic single unit. It had so such effects with a monotonic N3 and a monotonic single unit. 5. From a study of N3 amplitudes and numbers of impulses of single neurones, it appeared that an azimuthal difference as small as 3 degrees could be easily coded at a 95% correct level with stimuli presented at around 20 degrees ipsilateral, 20 degrees contralateral, and at the front. 6. The inter-aural pressure difference (IPD), which is considered an essential cue for echolocation in Myotis (Shimozawa et al. 1974), changed linearly with angle from 0 to 40 degrees lateral at a rate of 0.4 dB/degree for sounds between 33.5 and 49.0 kHz. 7. Assuming the just-detectable IPD to be 0.5 dB (as in man), the minimum detectable azimuthal difference of Myotis around the median plane would be 1.25 degrees.
Bat sonar and wing morphology predict species vertical niche