A Two-Dimensional Grid-Cell Code for Three-Dimensional Navigation in Freely Flying Bats

Grid cells in freely flying bats retain periodic firing during flight, and co-modular ensembles show toroidal organization across behavioral states.

• Why it matters: It is unclear whether the two-dimensional grid-cell code and its toroidal dynamics can support self-location when animals move through three-dimensional space.
• What they did: The study used large-scale wireless recordings in freely flying bats and analyzed flight geometry in both laboratory and wild settings to relate grid firing to motion planes.
• The result: Toroidal phase and grid-cell patterns mapped onto these two-dimensional planes of motion, implying a two-dimensional neural code aligns with behaviorally relevant subspaces for three-dimensional navigation.

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