{i} person or thing who feels or senses (especially by touch); (Zoology) body organ used for touching or feeling (i.e. antennae, tentacle, etc.); hint, tentative proposal
If you put out feelers, you make careful, quiet contacts with people in order to get information from them, or to find out what their reaction will be to a suggestion. When vacancies occur, the office puts out feelers to the universities