Lab Members

Research
My research focuses on orientation, navigation and spatial memory in animals at all spatial scales. In field based research I am interested in the sensory basis and mechanisms of how animals, in particular bats and birds are able to navigate to a known goal from unfamiliar areas. Current research involves radio tracking free flying migrating and homing bats. So far there is an amazing paucity of knowledge of how these flying mammals navigate to a home roost or during migration.

In a laboratory based setting I am interested in how bats use echolocation to learn about the location of landmarks in their environment and how familiarity with the environment affects the way they probe it for information. Bats are rare in that they have two sensory systems that can give them the same information, echolocation and vision. Little is known about how or if these senses interact to allow bats to familiarise themselves with their location. My research is investigating how bats combine or contrast these two senses during orientation.

Recent Publications

Holland, R.A., Thorup, K., Vonhof, M., Cochran, W.W., and Wikelski, M. (2006) Bat orientation using Earth’s magnetic field. Nature, 444: 653-788.

Holland , R.A. (2006) Orientation and navigation in bats: known unknowns or unknown unknowns? Behavioural Ecology and Sociobiology, In press.

Holland , R.A., Wikelski, M. and Wilcove, D (2006) How and why do insects migrate? Science, 313: 794-796.

Holland , R.A., Winter, P. and Waters D.A. (2005). Sensory systems and spatial memory in the fruit bat Rousettus aegyptiacus. Ethology 111: 715-725

Holland , R.A. and Waters, D.A. (2005). Echolocation calls and pinnae movement in the fruitbat Rousettus aegyptiacus. Acta Chiropterologica, 7: 83-90.

Holland R.A., Waters, D.A. and Rayner, J.M.V. (2004). Echolocation call structure in the Megachiropteran bat Rousettus aegyptiacus. Journal of Experimental Biology 207: 4361-4369