BPoD has moved!

BPoD has recently changed our domain name - we can now be found at bpod.org.uk

Please update your bookmarks!

Now in our 13th year of bringing you beautiful imagery from biomedical science every day

Search the archive of over 4000 images

Now Hear This
02 August 2014

Now Hear This

There’s a small nocturnal fly that stalks a singing male cricket, then dive-bombs, leaving a brood of larvae on its back. And as if this aerial assault isn’t bad enough, the larvae quickly burrow into their new host and emerge about a week later, killing it. What’s truly remarkable is the fly’s phenomenally acute hearing, which it uses to locate the chirping cricket. Because the fly’s ‘ears’ are less than 2 mm apart, sound reaches them both almost simultaneously. Without an ingenious mechanism, it would be impossible for the fly to pinpoint the sound. But it has a highly complex system that amplifies the nanosecond time difference between its two auditory organs. Now a team of scientists has developed a tiny prototype device (pictured here under a microscope) that mimics the fly’s hearing mechanism, ushering in a new generation of hypersensitive hearing aids.

Written by Nick Kennedy

Search The Archive

Submit An Image

Follow on Tumblr

Follow on Instagram

What is BPoD?

BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

Read More

BPoD is also available in Catalan at www.bpod.cat with translations by the University of Valencia.