Bat animal. Description, features, types and habitat of the bat

What does a bat look like and what color?

The bat looks like a small animal; instead of arms, it has peculiar wings with several membranes, like the legs of a toad. These mice mainly feed on insects, but there are also large individuals that eat other bats, as well as small birds and rodents.

Appearance of the animal:

Below we present photographs where you can see what the animal looks like. They differ in color, habitat and appearance. Depending on the continent where they live, their color differs, as does the fur on their body.
The mouse is distinguished by not very large eyes, as well as four legs, two of which are wings. The most interesting thing is that the animals and ordinary rodents are not related at all and do not even belong to the same class.
Ordinary mice are rodents, and bats are bats. They got their name because of their small size and squeak, like a rodent. The most interesting thing is that these are the only mammals that can actively fly. There are no other animals among mammals that are distinguished by their ability to fly.

Baby

Varieties

A vampire

What do bats look like? Description and structure of flying mammals

Bats are very diverse. The smallest of them is the pig-nosed bat (its photo and description will be presented below), weighing only about 2 grams. This is the smallest animal in the world.

The largest representatives of the family are the giant false vampire and the bare-skinned bulldog bat from Southeast Asia. Both types weigh about 175 grams.

Giant false vampire (Vampyrum spectrum)

Bats have a very unusual appearance: they have a short neck, a thick oblong head with a large mouth slit. The forelimbs are wings, which are much larger than the small body. Because of this, the animals visually appear much larger than they actually are.

The body of these mammals is covered with fur, which, depending on the species, can be smooth or shaggy, short or longer, sparse or thick. However, some animals are completely devoid of fur (naked-skinned bats). The coloring is often dominated by brown, gray and black tones.

Different species of chiropterans have different skull structures, as well as the shape and number of teeth, which is associated primarily with the composition of food. Like other mammals, they have a heterodont dental system, including incisors, canines, premolars and molars. Small insectivorous bats can have up to 38 teeth, but vampires have only 20 because they don't need to chew.

Most species of bats have large ears. Many people have a growth on their ear (tragus). Some bats direct sound into the nose and emit it through the nostrils (leaf bats, false vampire bats, horseshoe bats). In such species, around the nostrils there are peculiar fleshy outgrowths that serve to form a beam of echolocation signals.

American and Madagascan sucker-footed bats and several species of the bat family have acquired suckers—modified pads on the first digit of the forelimb or on the hind legs. With their help, animals can securely attach themselves to the smooth surface of plant leaves.

The tail of bats can be of different lengths (the longest is that of mousetails); most often it is covered with a flying membrane.

The hind limbs of chiropterans are turned to the sides with the knee joints backward, and not forward, as in other mammals. In shelters, they hang on their hind legs with the help of well-developed claws. Most have a tendon mechanism for closing the claws, which does not require the expenditure of muscle energy. Animals hanging upside down can instantly take flight straight from their starting position.

In the photo, the giant noctule bat is hanging upside down.

Some species, such as the common vampire bat, walk on all four limbs, which is not possible for other species, such as horseshoe bats. Ordinary vampires often sneak up on their victims on the ground.

Flight accessories

During evolution, the forelimbs were transformed into wings in bats. As a result, among mammals, only bats and fruit bats are capable of flapping flight.

Compared to humans, the humerus is shortened, and the fingers, on the contrary, are elongated and serve as the frame of the wing. The first finger remains free (most chiropterans need it to move to shelter, but some also use it to manipulate food objects), while the fifth extends across the entire width of the wing. The intermediate three fingers strengthen the part of the wing between the first and fifth fingers - it is called the interdigital membrane, or “wing tip”. The humerus is shorter than the main bone of the forearm - the radius; both support in front the so-called body membrane, or “wing base”. This part of the wing acts as a load-bearing surface.

The shape of the wing significantly affects flight performance. Two aerodynamic characteristics are especially important: wing loading and wing elongation. Wing loading refers to the ratio of an animal's mass to the area of its wings. A high load—large body mass with small wings—allows one to develop decent flight speeds, but limits its maneuverability. The elongation of the wing - its relative width - is calculated as the wingspan squared divided by their area. High elongation means that the wing is long and narrow and experiences little drag. Such a wing is often associated with high wing loading and high-speed flight.

The shape of the wing can be used to judge the lifestyle of a particular species. Those bats that fly among various obstacles, for example, in a forest, must be maneuverable and have a low wing load. Species like noctules that hunt in open spaces need speed, and therefore high wing load, provided by long narrow wings.

Small and medium-sized bats can reach speeds of 3 to 15 m/s while searching for prey, and species with very high wing loads can fly at even higher speeds. In contrast, the wing load of some nectar-feeding species is so low that they can hover in the air.

Echolocation

Bats use echolocation to navigate in space and hunt.

Echolocation is the process of perceiving high-frequency sounds, serving as a method of orientation in space, based on the characteristics of reflected sound waves.

In other words, bats emit a series of ultrasounds at frequencies of 20-120 kHz (these impulses are not perceived by the human ear), pick up the sound reflected from objects (echo) with their ears and, based on the time until its return, estimate the distance to objects and their dimensions. So they can distinguish objects up to 1 mm in size and separately perceive objects that are only 12 mm away from each other. This allows the animals to fly in the dark among any obstacles and successfully hunt insects.

All bats use echolocation, but some only use it to find their way. The smaller the individual, the easier it is for it to produce the high-frequency pulses necessary to detect insects.

One can only envy the speed of reaction of bats. Animals process information with amazing speed and instantly rearrange the structure of signals in accordance with immediate needs. Search signals are usually emitted one per wingbeat, and in different species they have a frequency of 5 to 15 signals per second. As soon as an insect is detected, the pulses become more frequent, the echo returns faster and faster as the animal approaches the victim, and the final phase of the echolocation process begins, when up to two hundred ultra-short pulses are emitted per second. After capturing the prey, the animal pauses to deal with the insect, but if necessary, even with its mouth full, it probes the space with ultrasounds.

Sense organs

Most bats have poor vision, but they are not blind. Some species, in suitable lighting, even abandon echolocation and use vision to search for prey.

They have not lost their sense of smell either. For example, leaf-nosed insects find ripe fruits of nightshade plants by smell. In addition, the sense of smell is also used to communicate with fellow animals. Thus, pipistrelle bats distinguish members of their colony from alien individuals by smell.

Many bats have very sensitive hearing. In a dense forest, hearing works much more efficiently than echolocation, so foraging bats rely mainly on auditory perception when searching for prey.

Maximum bat size and weight

A distinctive feature is its relatively small size. The smallest representative can weigh only 2 g, and the body length is 3 cm. The largest individual reaches a wingspan of up to 75 cm, but its weight is only 200 g. The wings have a membranous structure, and are very thin.

Chiropterans have teeth, since they belong to the order of predators, and have fangs, incisors, and molars. They need teeth to chew insects and small animals. They are distinguished by large ears; this is not a structural feature at all, but a way to recognize the terrain.

Cute creature

Blood sucking vampire bats

There are also blood-sucking animals called vampires. Their appearance is not much different from ordinary bats, but they have special characteristics. Their other teeth are less developed, but their fangs are huge and very sharp. With their help, they pierce the victim's skin and feed on its blood. Unfortunately, they do not eat anything other than this liquid. The digestive system is not able to break down insects.

Vampire bats:

Such mammals are found in Africa, mainly in warm regions. They find an area on the victim's body that is not covered with fur, bite through it and feed on blood. On average, a meal lasts 20-40 minutes. During this time, the animal drinks approximately 40 ml of blood.
The same weight as the animal itself. After a meal, the animal cannot take off due to its increased weight, so very liquid urine is excreted, which mainly consists of blood plasma. The remaining nutrients, as well as proteins, are digested in the stomach.
Most often, such mammals bite cattle and small animals, and there are cases of attacks on people. They prefer to bite sleeping prey that does not resist.
The animal's saliva contains an anesthetic, making the bite virtually painless. Saliva also contains an anticoagulant, which is why the blood does not clot and continues to flow out of the wound. There have been cases where blood flowed from the hole for 8 hours.

A vampire

Reproduction and lifespan of a bat

Bats do not form family pairs. They often change partners, and mating very often occurs in the winter quarters during hibernation. The male, half-asleep, crawls up to the female, the one who is closest to him, does his manly thing and returns to his previous place to watch the erotic dream.

In the photo there is a vampire bat

Animals from the order Chiroptera that live here give birth to offspring once a year. And in tropical climates, bats produce young all year round. As a rule, one blind naked mouse is born, rarely two; only representatives of this genus living in Canada can reproduce 3-4 babies at once. Bats feed their young with mother's milk. After a month, the grown-up mice are able to lead an independent life.

In the photo, the female bat changed her position to give birth to her baby

An interesting observation: representatives of an insectivorous species are able to find their cub, returning from a hunt, among a huge crowd of relatives and are never mistaken. The life expectancy of bats by animal standards is an average of 7 to 10 years. However, experts say that there are individuals that can live for a quarter of a century.

Nocturnal lifestyle of bats

These bats live in dark places and go out to hunt only at night. In rare cases, whole flocks can fly out during the daytime, preferably in the late afternoon. In most cases, if it is not a vampire mouse, they feed on small insects.

They can sleep under cacti, burrow in caves and under stones. The hunt begins at night. They navigate and find their prey using ultrasonic parameters, thanks to their echo location. Some night moths have the ability to deflect ultrasonic waves so as not to become a victim of the animal. This is a unique phenomenon due to which animals cannot detect a mole cricket, even using their location abilities.

Night predator

Types of bats with photos

There are many species of “chiroptera”, and their differences lie in the different structure of the skeleton and the number of teeth. The main species of bats include:

Tailless or Honduran white bat

It is considered the smallest variety, with a body length of no more than 5 centimeters. The habitat of this animal extends to Honduras, as well as to the countries of Central America. The basis of the diet is fruits. These animals can be found in groups of 5-6 individuals.

Hog-nosed bat (Craseonycteris thonglongyai)

The length of this animal without a tail is about 3 and a half cm, with a weight of about 20 grams. The animal got its name due to the shape of its nose, which resembles a pig's snout. The habitat of such bats extends to Thailand and neighboring countries. Here they settle in limestone caves and feed in thickets of bamboo and teak.

Evening bat (Nyctalus noctula)

On the contrary, it is a larger representative of its genus. Includes 13 subspecies. Individuals grow up to half a meter in size. They fly out in search of food at dusk and before dawn. The animal feeds on butterflies, beetles, and some birds. This variety is found in North America, as well as in some European countries. The main habitats are associated with dense green areas.

Bat dog and fox (fruit mouse)

The variety differs in that it has an elongated muzzle. The animals grow to almost 0.4 meters with a wingspan of almost 0.7 meters and a weight of almost 1 kilogram. Found in the tropics. The basis of the diet is fruits, as well as flower nectar.

Smooth-nosed bat (Vespertilionidae)

This variety includes up to 3 hundred subspecies. The family is distinguished by the fact that it has a smooth muzzle, without the presence of growths in the form of cartilage. About 40 subspecies live in our country. With the onset of winter cold, they fall into a state of suspended animation.

Long Eared Ears (Plecotus)

A characteristic feature of the species is the presence of large locator ears, as well as the shape of the wings. These animals have short but wide wings, and their body length is within 6 centimeters. Long-eared bats feed on various nocturnal insects, in the form of butterflies, mosquitoes, beetles, etc.

Bulldog bat (Molossidae)

This variety is distinguished by the presence of relatively long, but narrow and pointed wings. This allows the animal to make more frequent movements of its wings in flight. They grow no more than 15 centimeters in length. Their habitat is associated with the tropics, where they sometimes form numerous colonies.

Vampire bats may be of particular interest because they are not so harmless animals. These bats pose a danger not only to various animals, but also to people. The bite of this animal may not be harmless, since they are carriers of dangerous and sometimes fatal diseases.

What do bats eat in the wild?

In one flight, this mammal is capable of eating insects, which by weight make up a third of the mass of the animal itself, which indicates the gluttony of the mammal. These animals have a very good metabolism, so they quickly digest food. If this mammal is a vampire, then it is capable of eating quite a lot per night, approximately as much blood as it weighs. Surprisingly, bats can share blood with their brothers. They remember which animal is greedy and will not feed it.

How do bats navigate in the dark?

It's simple, bats “see with their ears.” After all, they have such an amazing property as echolocation. How does it work? And so, animals emit ultrasonic waves, which are reflected from objects and return back through an echo. Incoming return signals are carefully recorded by bats, thanks to this they are perfectly oriented in space and even hunt. Moreover, through reflected sound waves they can not only see their potential prey, but even determine its speed and size.

To emit ultrasonic signals, nature has equipped bats with a specially designed mouth and nose. First, the sound originates in the throat, then is produced by the mouth and goes to the nose, radiating through the nostrils. The nostrils themselves have various bizarre projections that serve to shape and focus sound.

People can only hear how bats squeak, because the ultrasonic waves emitted by them are not perceived by the human ear. Interesting fact: earlier, when humanity did not know about the existence of ultrasound, the amazing orientation of bats in pitch darkness was explained by the presence of extrasensory abilities.

How many wings does a bat have?

In these mammals, the wing structure is significantly different from birds. Unlike birds, bats have more flexible partitions and very thin skin. Thanks to special muscle fibers, which are located inside the soft part of the wing and act as peculiar receptors and sensors, the wing can be stretched or weakened. Thanks to this unusual wing structure, the animals can develop very high speeds and, in general, their movements are more maneuverable than those of birds. Although it is much more difficult to control movable wings.

The animal has only two wings with thin membranes. Moreover, the wing does not always end with claws. Vampire bats keep their offspring near them longer than other bats. The female spends approximately 9 months nursing the baby. Oddly enough, the female gives birth to only one animal per year. The funny thing is that bats are assistants to people who are engaged in agriculture.

Chiroptera

This is explained by a good appetite and the ability to eat large enough insects that destroy crops and gardens. However, at the same time, the animals cause great damage, as they can eat fruits and fruit trees. In addition, they carry rabies and other dangerous diseases. There is a legend that animals in flocks in Africa attack people, sucking blood. In fact, in most cases, bats do not attack people; they prefer animals as victims. However, there are still cases of bites, but no one has died from these bites.

In the last century, a myth appeared that says that bats can cling to hair and get stuck in it. In fact, these are fictions; perhaps in the last century some ladies wore their hair up and visited caves in order to see what was inside. Maybe a couple of animals got stuck in my hair. But mammals do not experience any pleasure from this. Therefore, if you wear a regular hairstyle, you are unlikely to get a bat tangled in your hair.

In a cave

Order Chiroptera

Chiroptera (Chiroptera) is an order of placental mammals capable of active flight. Representatives of the order are distributed throughout the world, with the exception of highlands and isolated islands. One species of bat (northern leatherback) even penetrates the Arctic Circle, where it successfully breeds. And on islands such as the Azores, Hawaii and New Zealand, bats are the only native mammals.

Northern leatherneck (Eptesicus nilssonii)

Bats are common in a wide variety of ecological systems: forest, mountain, cave, anthropogenic, etc.

About a quarter of all living mammals are chiropterans.

The order Chiroptera is divided into two suborders:

fruit bats (Megachiroptera), which is represented by a single family of fruit bats (Pteropodidae);
and, in fact, Bats (Microchiroptera), numbering 17 families.

How are bats different from fruit bats?

The main difference is that most bats are endowed with the most sophisticated echolocation system, while fruit bats almost completely lack it.
Fruit bats usually have a claw on the second finger of the forelimb, just like on the first finger, but there is no tragus, a growth on the inside of the ear, unlike bats.
Bats are usually smaller than fruit bats and have a shorter snout.
They also differ in their feeding preferences: fruit bats eat mainly fruits and nectar, and bats are mostly predators, hunting insects, and large species also hunting small mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fish. There are also vampires among bats.

What to feed a bat at home?

Many people think that this is a good option for a pet, but this is actually not the case. Bats are unlikely to be able to recognize their owner in a person and understand why he feeds them. Therefore, a person will not receive any return.

Bat in the house:

In addition, this mammal needs a lot of space to fly. Without flying, they get fat very quickly and die. Almost all bats feed on insects in large quantities.
Accordingly, you will have to spend a lot of time and effort to accumulate a large number of insects for the animal every day. You can feed them with fruits, but not all bats will eat them. Still, most of the diet is insects.
There is an opinion that any bat is a vampire and sucks blood. Actually no, only three subspecies are vampires, and there are very few of them.
You can become infected with rabies from bats, but they are nocturnal, practically do not attack people, and only 8 cases of rabies infection are known in history. Accordingly, the likelihood of contracting this disease is extremely low.

The colony

Why do you dream about a bat: interpretation from dream books

In popular dream books, the bat is considered a very important symbol that cannot be ignored. Often it turns out to be a significant warning for a person, which allows him to avoid serious problems in real life. But there are also other meanings of the discussed plot.

The first thing you should do is study the information from Nina Grishina’s dream book. The interpreter notes that the bat turns out to be a harbinger of bad news. The information received will greatly upset the sleeping person and deprive him of a good mood for a long time.

In the French dream book, the animal in question is a symbol of the suffering that other people cause to the dreamer. He needs to be careful in choosing acquaintances for his inner circle. Interestingly, in the same dream book, a wedding with a bat in night dreams turns out to be a positive sign. This strange plot suggests that the person has chosen a very worthy partner for himself. It is with him that you can safely connect your life.

And in the Gypsy dream book, the bat turned out to be a good harbinger. If you managed to see her in a dream, it means that all the minor troubles that bother a man or woman so much will soon disappear by themselves.

In Miller's work, the most negative symbol is the white bat. It always turns out to be a harbinger of death, which can overtake both the sleeping person and the people close to him.

The most famous exoteric dream book is the book by Elena Anopova. This work helps a person penetrate into his own inner world and understand it.

If a bat lands on a person’s shoulder in a dream, such a plot suggests that in the near future one should not rely on intuition. She is capable of deceiving a man or woman. Before making each decision, you need to weigh all the pros and cons, assessing them as soberly and rationally as possible. It’s better to ask an uninterested outsider to express a truthful opinion about him.

We suggest you read: How snakes reproduce

Bats are important to various ecosystems around the world. People are often prejudiced and afraid of them. Let's take a moment and appreciate the adorable side of these little animals. And the 25 cutest species of bats will help us with this.

Bats are mysterious and misunderstood creatures. They are frequent heroes of dark and scary stories and myths. They have accumulated a bad reputation over the centuries. But in fact, bats are vital members of ecosystems around the world, acting as natural pest control agents and also helping to pollinate plants and disperse seeds.

Where do bats live?

City residents believe that it is impossible to find bats in such an area. In fact, this is not so; bats also settle in big cities, but away from high-rise buildings and high-rise buildings.

Where do bats live:

They can be found in forest belts, near water bodies. There are a lot of insects in such places, so there is a lot of food for mammals. If in summer it is quite difficult to find animals in a big city, then closer to autumn they can fly near high-rise buildings.
Closer to winter, these mammals look for places where they can take shelter and hide from the frost. Therefore, they are often found under window sills and often fly into apartments to hide from the cold. They prefer to spend the winter in ventilation hatches, or hide on the roof, between the slabs of houses.
Without food, an individual that feeds on insects can live a long time. The trouble is that a large amount of moisture is lost through the wings. Even if there is no food, it is necessary to have a source of water nearby. In this case, she can live quite a long time. Otherwise, its wings dry out and the mammal dies.

On the rocks

25 interesting facts about bats that you probably didn’t know (26 photos)

Author: sdv

March 28, 2021 10:15

Community: Animals

Tags: wild animals animals interesting interesting facts history bats educational facts

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Bats have been around for millions of years - they appeared before humans inhabited the planet. Despite their reputation as not-so-cuddly creatures, they are some of the most amazing creatures in the world. But what makes them so interesting?

See all photos in the gallery

1. The scientific name of bats, Chiroptera, comes from the Greek words “cheir” (hand) and “pteron” (wing) = “chiroptera”.

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2. The word "bat" (from English - bat), appeared in 1570 from the Middle English word "bakke", which is related to the Old Swedish word "natbakka", meaning "night bat", and the Old Norse "leđrblaka" meaning "leather flapper"

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3. In 600 BC. Greek fabulist Aesop wrote a fable about a bat who borrowed money to start a business. According to the story, the business went bankrupt, and she was forced to hide during the daytime to avoid meeting those to whom she owes money. This is why, according to the fable, bats only appear at night.

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4. Bats can be divided into two main groups: 1 - fruit bats, large bats that eat mainly fruits, and common bats that eat insects, frogs, fish, lizards, birds and drink blood.

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5. Bats that feed on frogs can distinguish poisonous from non-venomous ones by listening to the sounds made by the male frog.

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6. Scientists believe that bats first appeared 65-100 million years ago, at the same time as dinosaurs. The earliest known fruit bats lived thirty-five million years ago. Many scientists believe that fruit bats may be more closely related to primates (including humans) than common bats.

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7. In China and Japan, bats are a symbol of happiness. In Chinese, the words "bat" and "luck" are pronounced the same - "fu".

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8. The wings of bats consist of phalanges of the fingers of the hand, covered with a skin membrane. This membrane makes up almost 95% of the body surface - it helps bats regulate body temperature, blood pressure, water balance and gas exchange.

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9. Bats are the only mammals that can fly. The difference between bats and flying squirrels (other mammals that are mistakenly believed to be able to fly) is that mice can control their flight, while flying squirrels can only glide.

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10. Unlike birds, which flap their entire forelimbs when flying, bats actually flap their elongated toes.

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11. Scientists used an anticoagulant from the saliva of vampire bats to treat people who had suffered strokes and heart patients.

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12. Contrary to popular belief, bats are not blind. Many of them can see quite well, and some species can even detect ultraviolet light.

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13. Chiropterans can hear sounds at frequencies from 20 to 120,000 Hz. By comparison, humans can only hear from 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz; dogs - from 40 Hz to 60,000 Hz.

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14. Bats are the slowest breeding mammals in the world based on their size. Their pregnancy lasts longer than other animals of the same size.

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15. Approximately 70% of bats eat insects. The average bat can eat more than 600 bugs per hour - that's equivalent to the average person eating about twenty pizzas overnight.

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16. The story of Count Dracula originated in Eastern Europe, but true vampire bats are only found in Central and South America.

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17. Bats live on all continents except Antarctica. They are found as far north as the Arctic Circle and as far south as Argentina and the southernmost point of South Africa.

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18. Vampire bats are the only mammals that feed only on blood.

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19. Contrary to popular belief, vampire bats do not actually suck blood. They usually "absorb" up to two teaspoons per night. Blood moves through the mouth through two channels located under the animal's tongue. The mice's body uses only red blood cells (erythrocytes), and within two minutes of the start of "absorption", the blood plasma is excreted in the urine.

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20. Vampire bats drink an amount of blood equal to their weight every day. By comparison, a human vampire, such as Dracula, would have to drink the blood of an entire table of people every night in order to survive.

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21. The world's largest bat creature is the giant flying fox. Its wingspan ranges from 1.5 to 1.8 meters.

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22. Bracken Bat Cave in Texas, USA - the largest bat colony in the world. More than 20 million bats live in this cave.

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23. According to a study by Animal Planet, vampire bats are the third most dangerous animal. They come after wolves and gorillas, before piranhas.

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24. The pulse of the bat (a genus of bats) is so weak at rest that it reaches 18 beats per minute. During activity, her heart rate is 880 beats per minute.

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25. Most of us believe that animals, especially mammals, only live up to 10-15 years. However, some species can live up to 30 years in the wild.

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Body temperature, bat myopia

There is a legend that bats are blind. They actually see, but their vision is not the same as that of humans. In most cases, echo location, that is, ears, helps them navigate in space. Therefore, most animals have large ears.

Echolocation and blindness of bats:

With their help, they hear sounds and can communicate with each other. A lot of research was carried out on the animals, they were covered with varnish, their eyes were blindfolded to understand how they moved.
Only several decades later they found out that these animals orient themselves in space, not at all with the help of their eyes and wings. They do this using their ears, that is, the echo of the location.
They emit sound waves that people cannot hear, the rays bounce off the surface, and these residual vibrations are picked up by locators. Such sense organs help to navigate in space.

Cute animal

Sense organs

Bats' response to light: The bat's retina lacks cones , the receptors responsible for daytime vision.

Their vision is twilight and is provided by rods. Therefore, during the day, animals are forced to sleep , since in daylight they see poorly.

Some representatives have eyes covered with bizarre folds of skin. This once again confirms the hypothesis that mice do not orient themselves in space using a visual analyzer . Close relatives of bats, fruit bats, also belonging to the order Chiroptera, have cones. These animals can also be seen during the day.

The secondary role of the visual analyzer for animals was revealed during a simple experiment : when the animals were blindfolded, they did not stop navigating their surroundings. When the same was repeated with the ears, the mice began to bump into walls and objects in the room.

Bats bring undoubted benefits to gardens and farms. In the dark, when birds are inactive, they massively destroy not only insect pests, but also small rodents. Read our articles about what these mysterious animals eat and what their habitat is.

How are bats born?

The mating process in bats is quite interesting. In males, sperm matures in the summer, since there is a lot of food at this time. It accumulates in the testes. The mating process itself occurs at the end of autumn, or even in winter, when the animals are half asleep and hide in secluded places, huddled for the winter.

How are bats born?

Moreover, even a fertilized egg inside the female may not immediately implant into the uterus. The fertilization process will only occur if conditions are favorable. That is, sperm can remain in a female’s body for several months, without fertilization occurring.
Typically the gestation process is 1-9 months. It all depends on the individual species of bat. Females protect their offspring when they fly away to hunt, leaving them inside the colony. The female most often gives birth to babies head up.
When the baby comes out, it makes a characteristic squeak. It is by this squeak that a mother recognizes her baby from a crowd of other animals. In case of danger, the baby clings to the mother's nipple with his teeth, digging his claws into the fur. Thus, the mother carries the baby to a safe place. Indeed, females are able to recognize their children by squeaking among the colony.

Animal

How long does a bat live?

Babies' eyes open at 5-10 days. At first they are completely hairless, the weight of the cub is half the weight of the mother. After about 3-5 weeks, the baby takes its first flight. Under the strict guidance of his mother, he learns to hunt and get his own food. Usually babies are considered mature at the age of four months. They live approximately 5-10 years. Some individuals can live 12 years at home. But this is only if there is a place to fly and good food. They can fly quite far, covering approximately 50 km per day.

Who eats bats, who hunts bats from birds?

There is a lot of information regarding what eats bats. Oddly enough, not so long ago there were cases of tit attacks on animals. Indeed, some birds hunt bats, sometimes even in flight. Sometimes these are large birds, such as eagles, and crows become real bat hunters. However, catching such prey is quite difficult, due to the fact that it develops enormous speed.

Animal

How to attract a bat at home?

A bat flying into a house causes hysterics, as well as the reading of prayers among elderly residents of the apartment. This animal is associated with black magic, so there are many signs regarding the animal flying into the house. You can find out about them in the article “A bat flew into an apartment or house: a sign .

How to attract a bat at home:

It is necessary to get rid of and catch the animal. To do this, it is advisable to use humane methods, that is, those that do not lead to the death of the mammal. There is no need to kill the animal.
Please note that these animals are carriers of rabies and a large number of viruses. To protect yourself from infection, you need to wear gloves and contact the animal using a towel or cloth.
On the street, bats are caught using nets or white cloth. Chiropterans are nocturnal animals; they react quite aggressively to white light and fly towards it.

Animals
cause a lot of trouble to people involved in agriculture, and not at all because they drink the blood of animals. This mammal is a carrier of rabies and other infections. It is noteworthy that vampire bats themselves are immune to rabies, and therefore are insensitive to it. They most often live in flocks; they also prefer to bite prey in company, not alone.

What class of animals does a bat belong to?

A unique and at the same time terrifying creation of nature is the bat. The animal belongs to the class of chiropteran mammals. The exemplary behavior of parents will make anyone who sees the mother’s care touch. The female is capable of raising someone else's child if necessary. Zoologists call flyers altruists.

Microchiroptera became special for many reasons:

high sensitivity to light, ultrasound;
the only mammals that can fly;
in the dark they reach speeds of more than 45 km/h;
have a special way of orientation at night.

Scientists have been arguing for a long time about the identity of the bat. The creature has characteristics of both animals and birds.