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Special Episode: Ed Yong & An Immense World

This Podcast Will Kill You

CHAPTER

The Evolution of Luna Moths

Some moths have these very beautiful elaborate tails at the end of their wings. And then Luna moth in North America, it's just a beautiful insect with these long streamers and from it's coming out of their hind wings. It looks like those are acoustic defenses too. They sort of flap and rotate as the moth flies. And it's a mess with the bats' echolocation. Maybe it just distorts the bats' perception of where the moth is. But whatever the case is, bats that attack Luna moths with intact tails tend to miss. And bats very rarely miss when they attack moths that don't have such defenses.

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