The secret universe of vibrational communication in animals

Elephants, for example, perceive ground vibrations with their feet, which allows them to detect specific objects located several kilometers away, recognize them and even know their emotional state (fear, anger, etc.).

But the ones that excel in this sense are the arthropods. Commonly used by more than 150,000 species in this family, their antennae are usually located on their legs, and sometimes on their antennae. They can then locate their prey or predators, find sexual partners or organize groups, simply via the vibrations they generate or pick up…

Secrets of vibrations: valuable information about the environment

Like many insect groups, membranos communicate using vibroreception: through a series of abdominal contractions, they send out complex signals that spread along the length of the leaf on which they remain. Using a laser vibrometer, a vibration-measuring device, these messages can be captured and even translated into sounds: they are real songs.