Publications
Published work, preprints, methods, and developing research across active sensing, behavioural bioacoustics, and theoretical ethology.
Highlighted work
The Temporal Logic of Bat Echolocation: A Responsivity Theory of Call Timing Patterns
The temporal patterning of bat echolocation has been extensively characterised and used to interpret behavioural regulation during active foraging. Yet a general mathematical account linking these patterns to acoustic propagation, relative motion, and the timing of behaviourally selected information remains incomplete. Here we present the responsivity fra...
Temporal Feasibility Constraints on Wingbeat-Call Synchrony in Actively Echolocating Bats.
Echolocating bats operate within a closed sensorimotor loop in which call emission, echo reception, sensory processing, and motor response are linked by finite propagation delays and bounded response times. Although synchrony between wingbeats and call timing is frequently observed, it remains unclear when such coordination is temporally feasible and when...
ESPERDYNE - A Dual-Band Heterodyne Monitor and Ultrasound Recorder for Bioacoustic Field Surveys.
1. Background. Ultrasonic monitoring is essential for ecological studies of bats and other animals, yet high-performance field devices remain prohibitively expensive and inaccessible-particularly in biodiversity-rich regions with limited research infrastructure. Existing low-cost options often lack real-time listening and require a complex setup. There re...
Widefield Acoustics Heuristic - Advancing Microphone Array Design for Accurate Spatial Tracking of Echolocating Bats
Accurate three-dimensional localisation of ultrasonic bat calls is essential for advancing behavioural and ecological research. I present a comprehensive, open-source simulation framework—Array WAH —for designing, evaluating, and optimising microphone arrays tailored to bioacoustic tracking. The tool incorporates biologically realistic signal generation, ...
RUBAT Studio - A Unified Workbench for Multichannel Bioacoustic Data Acquisition
1. High-resolution ultrasonic recording is central to modern bioacoustics, behavioural ecology, and passive acoustic monitoring. Yet, implementing flexible, multichannel acquisition systems with real-time playback, monitoring and experimental control remains technically demanding. Existing solutions often require bespoke code development or expensive prop...
WAH-i - Optimising Microphone Array Geometry for Customised Localisation Accuracy
1. Accurate spatial localisation of free-flying echolocating bats is foundational for resolving fine-scale flight behaviour, prey interception, and spatial decision-making in natural environments. Acoustic localisation using microphone arrays is widely employed for this purpose, yet array geometries in field studies are typically chosen heuristically rath...
Rates, Ripples, and Responsivity - The Geometry of Echolocation in Water-Foraging Bats
Water-surface foraging is a rare strategy among echolocating bats, requiring precise coordination between sonar emission, echo timing, and flight geometry. Here, I develop a geometric-responsivity framework to explain how bats foraging over water regulate call timing under these constraints. The model links beam projection, flight height, and specular sur...
BATSY4-PRO - An Open-Source Multichannel Ultrasound Recorder for Field Bioacoustics
Background: Behavioural studies of echolocation and acoustic communication in free-flying bats depend on multichannel ultrasonic recordings. However, access to these methods remains geographically uneven: tropical and subtropical regions harbour much of the world's bat diversity yet remain underrepresented in experimental behavioural bioacoustics. Convent...
Echolocation Dynamics in Active Foraging and Pursuit
Echolocating bats rely on self-generated biosonar signals to perceive and navigate their environments. While traditional models treat echolocation as a rigid, reflexive behaviour with fixed emitter and receiver geometries, empirical evidence suggests a high degree of plasticity in both signal generation and spatial sampling. This thesis explores the dynam...
Probabilistic Sensory Constraints Shape Swarm Cohesion in Echolocating Bats
1. Cohesive animal groups rely on continuous behavioural updating to regulate spacing, alignment, and collision avoidance, yet all sensory-guided interaction is constrained by finite signal propagation delays, processing time, and motor latency. In actively sensing species such as echolocating bats, these constraints raise a fundamental ecological questio...
Oscillating Ears Dynamically Transform Echoes in Constant-Frequency Bats
Constant-frequency (CF) bats exhibit rapid oscillations of their external ears. Yet, the functional role of these movements has remained unresolved since their initial documentation over half a century ago. Although recent studies have demonstrated that pinna motion generates Doppler shifts, they do not explain why ear oscillations intensify at close rang...
The Monumental Mistake of Evicting Bats from Archaeological Sites—A Reflection from New Delhi
We highlight the importance of an integrated management policy for archaeological monuments and the insect-eating bats that roost inside them. We refer to India, but the issue is general and of worldwide significance. There is increasing evidence that the ecosystem services provided by insect-eating bats in agricultural fields are of vital economic import...