Do Animals Use Echo Sounding?

Echolocation is a two-part process: the animal makes a sound, and the animal listens to the rebounding sound waves to identify where items are located. Animals like bats, dolphins, shrews, some whales and some birds all use sound—echolocation—to see in the dark.

How does animal echolocation work?

To use echolocation, animals first make a sound. Then, they listen for the echoes from the sound waves bouncing off objects in their surroundings. The animal's brain can make sense of the sounds and echoes to navigate or find prey.

Do dolphins use echo sounding?

Interestingly, dolphins and other animals such as porpoises, bats, and whales share a unique way of “seeing” the world through echolocation, also called sonar. In other words, dolphins can emit and receive the echoes of sound waves that bounce off any objects near them in the water.