Feb.
5, 2013 — Most mammals, including humans, see in stereo and hear in
stereo. But whether they can also smell in stereo is the subject of a
long-standing scientific controversy.
Now,
a new study shows definitively that the common mole (Scalopus aquaticus) -
the same critter that disrupts the lawns and gardens of homeowners throughout
the eastern United States, Canada and Mexico -- relies on stereo sniffing to
locate its prey. The paper that describes this research, "Stereo and
Serial Sniffing Guide Navigation to an Odor Source in a Mammals," was
published on Feb. 5 in the journal Nature Communications.
"I
came at this as a skeptic. I thought the moles' nostrils were too close
together to effectively detect odor gradients," said Kenneth Catania, the
Stevenson Professor of Biological Sciences at Vanderbilt University, who
conducted the research.
What
he found turned his assumptions upside down and opened new areas for potential
future research. "The fact that moles use stereo odor cues to locate food
suggests other mammals that rely heavily on their sense of smell, like dogs and
pigs might also have this ability,"Catania said.
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