How can a kangaroo rat hear an owl in flight?

Kangaroo rats have a remarkable adaptation that allows them to hear owls flying in the dead of night: enormous ears.

Here's how it works:

* Large, Thin Eardrums: Their ears have very large and thin eardrums, making them incredibly sensitive to even the faintest sounds.

* Long, Funnel-Shaped Ears: The ears are also long and funnel-shaped, acting like antennas to collect sound waves from the environment. This allows the kangaroo rat to pinpoint the location of a sound, especially in the dark.

* Specialized Inner Ear: Their inner ear is specially designed to amplify low-frequency sounds, which are the frequencies owls produce when flapping their wings.

These adaptations give kangaroo rats a significant advantage in detecting owls, their primary predator, even from great distances. When they hear the sound of an owl's wings, they can immediately react and dive into their burrow for safety.