Organisms and their environments form tightly coupled interacting systems in which all components play a significant role in the extraction of meaning from experience. What is the information available to crickets, fish and bats in their natural ecological context via the sensors we are investigating? What is the particular signature of an attacking predator, for example a spider? How does a fish extract information about prey identity and location within the turbulent running water environment? What is about bats in fluttering vegetation?

We hardly know anything about the background noise in most of these cases. This is the most ecological workpackage, but an important one, as it is the only one which gives the context of the sensors, i.e. an idea of conditions under which the receptors have to fulfil their tasks. It therefore implies putting the boots on and go in the field (top) as well as try to recreat field conditions in the lab (bottom).