Rachel Page

In our lab, we investigate sensory and cognitive mechanisms underlying animal behavior. Animals use a wide array of cues and signals to glean information about their environment. An animal’s sensory and perceptual systems filter incoming stimuli and define an animal’s Umwelt, or the specific way it perceives the world. Bats are a highly diverse ecological group, and variation in their use of sensory modalities, foraging strategies, and social information makes them excellent candidates for in depth studies of sensory and cognitive ecology.

One of the great joys of being positioned in Panamá is having our field sites right outside our laboratory doors, allowing us the opportunity to dive deeply into natural history. By closely observing animals in nature, and then designing hypothesis-driven tests that we can conduct outdoor flight chambers and nearby laboratory facilities, we shed light on the sensory and cognitive tools animals use to make sense of the world around them.