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An insectivorous bat can eat up to 200 mosquitoes in an hour of hunting.
Lifestyle
Although bats are divided into many species and live in different natural environments, their habits are surprisingly similar. Almost all of them are nocturnal, and during the day they sleep hanging upside down. Bats do not build nests. Bats are capable of falling into torpor, accompanied by a decrease in metabolic rate, respiration rate and heart rate; many are capable of falling into long-term seasonal hibernation.
Spreading
The range of bats practically coincides with the range of the order Chiroptera.
Using echolocation
Bats detect objects blocking their path by emitting sounds inaudible to humans and picking up their echoes reflected from objects. Before the discovery of ultrasonic echolocation, bats were thought to have extrasensory perception. They were deprived of the ability to use their vision, their wings were covered with thick varnish to deprive them of the ability to feel air currents, and still they avoided obstacles located in the experimental chamber.
Research by Dr. O. Henson, an anatomist at Yale University, has shown that when reconnaissance ultrasounds are emitted, the muscles in bats' ears close the pinna to prevent damage to the hearing system.
During flight, bats sing songs using complex combinations of syllables at high frequencies (due to their ability to echolocate). They create ultrasonic waves from 40 to 100 kHz. The call of the Brazilian folded lip consists of 15 to 20 syllables. When courting a female, each male sings his own song, although in general the melodies of all songs are similar. The difference lies in the individual combination of different syllables. Complex voice messages are used not only for courtship, but also to identify each other, indicate social status, determine territorial boundaries, when raising offspring and when countering individuals who have invaded someone else's territory. According to biologist Michael Smotherman, no other mammal except humans has the ability to communicate using such complex vocal sequences. The vocal center, responsible for organizing complex sequences of syllables, is located slightly higher in bats than in humans, and scientists cannot yet determine exactly where it is located.
Bats that feed on fish (for example, the Mexican fish-eating mouse) patrol the water surface at night, emitting very strong echolocation signals. However, these signals do not penetrate the water column. The mouse will not detect the fish underwater, but will immediately find it if the fish sticks out at least a small part of its body from the water.
Echolocation of bats varies among different families. Horseshoe bats emit signals through their nose, and these signals are short (50-100 ms) ultrasonic bursts with a constant frequency of 81-82 kHz, but at the end of the signal the frequency drops sharply to 10-14 kHz. And smooth-nosed bats emit significantly shorter (2-5 ms) signals through their mouths with a frequency that during this time drops from 130 to 30-40 kHz.
Bats are able to detect obstacles made of wires at a distance of 17 meters. The detection range depends on the wire diameter. A wire with a diameter of 0.4 mm will be found from a distance of 4 meters, and a wire with a diameter of 0.08 mm from 50 cm. The length of typical bat locating signals is about 4 mm. However, the mouse reacts not only to the thickness, but also to the length of the wire, with the result that if the segment is long enough, the wire will be detected.
Bats in culture
Corynorhinus townsendii
Main article: Chiroptera in culture
| A bat is a chimera, a monstrous, impossible creature, a symbol of dreams, nightmares, ghosts, a sick imagination... The general irregularity and monstrosity seen in the body of a bat, the ugly anomalies in the structure of the senses, allowing the disgusting animal to hear with its nose and see with its ears - everything this, as if on purpose, was adapted to ensure that the bat was a symbol of mental disorder and madness. French naturalist A. Toussenel, 1874 |
Danger
According to WHO, bats are a natural reservoir of the Marburg and Ebola viruses, which cause fatal diseases (a particularly dangerous infection). These viruses are included in the list of the most dangerous known pathogenic viruses for humans. There is evidence that bats are involved in transmission. [ source?] This was reported in the November 2012 WHO Newsletter.
see also
- Popular science film "Wildlife Predators: Bats"
Notes
Sources
- Naumov N. P., Kartashev N. N. Zoology of vertebrates. - Part 2.- Reptiles, birds, mammals: A textbook for biologists. specialist. Univ.- M.: Higher. school, 1979. - 272 p., ill.
- Mosiyash S. S. Flying at night. - M.: Knowledge, 1985.
- WHO fact sheet November 2012 Marburg hemorrhagic fever.
Literature
- // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron: In 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional ones). - St. Petersburg. , 1890-1907.
Links
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
See what “Bats” are in other dictionaries:
BATS, mammals (order Chiroptera). Body length from 2.5 to 14 cm. About 800 species, distributed wherever there is woody vegetation, especially numerous in the tropics and subtropics. Vision is poorly developed, they can navigate by catching... ... Modern encyclopedia
Suborder of mammals of the order Chiroptera. Body length from 2.5 to 14 cm. Approx. 700 species (17 families), widely distributed, numerous in the tropics and subtropics. Caves, tree hollows, ruins, buildings serve as shelters for bats... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
- (Microchiroptera), suborder of bats. Known since the Oligocene. In contrast, fruit bats are smaller in size (body length from 2.5 to 14 cm) and have more advanced adaptations for flight. The large tubercle of the humerus in most L. m. forms... ... Biological encyclopedic dictionary
- (Microchiroptera) suborder of mammals of the order Chiroptera (See Chiroptera). They differ in appearance from representatives of the second suborder of bats (See Bats) in their small size (body length up to 14 cm) and in the fact that the second finger of the front ... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Or bats (Chiroptera) are a order of mammals with the following main distinctive features: the bones of the forelimbs are greatly elongated; between their toes, between the forelimbs, the body and the hind limbs, and for the most part also... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Ephron
Suborder of mammals of the order Chiroptera. Body length from 2.5 to 14 cm. About 700 species (17 families), widely distributed, numerous in the tropics and subtropics. Caves, tree hollows, ruins, buildings serve as shelters for bats... ... encyclopedic Dictionary
Suborder of mammals neg. bats. Dl. bodies from 2.5 to 14 cm. Approx. 700 species (17 families), widely distributed, numerous in the tropics and subtropics. Shelters for L. m. are caves, tree hollows, ruins, human buildings, etc.... ... Natural science. encyclopedic Dictionary
The bats- ♠ A harbinger of serious troubles for which you are not ready. Imagine knocking down bats with a hot poker or shooting them with a bow (see Poker, Bow) ... Big family dream book
THE BATS- ♠ See Wild animals... Big family dream book
The bats- The fate of the unfortunate person who sees this ugly animal in a dream is terrible. Sorrows and disasters from many evils await you. The death of someone close to you or serious injuries is possible after a dream in which these monsters appear to you. White bat - almost... ...Miller's Dream Book
It's not easy being a bat. Count Dracula significantly damaged their reputation, and the case of rabies, sharp teeth and the ability to sleep upside down inspire fear in many people. But despite all this, bats are amazing creatures, although they can sometimes cause a little trouble. We will consider as many as 13 (the number was not chosen on purpose) interesting and unusual facts about bats. You will find out what class bats belong to, what they eat, whether they hunt people, and much more incredible things.
Fact 1 (debriefing). Do mammals fly?
Bats are the only mammals that can fly. Bats are real aerial aces; their thin membranous wings easily change their shape in flight and are capable of reaching very high speeds.
Fact 2 (culinary). What do bats eat? and how many?
One bat can catch up to 1200 mosquitoes and others in one hour. Bracken Cave in Texas is home to an estimated 20 million Mexican anuran bats, which can eat 200 tons of insects in one night.
Fact 3 (scary). All bats are vampires?
Not all bats eat blood. There are only three species of vampire bats that live in Central and South America. Travelers need not worry, as these little vampires are only dangerous to cows.
Fact 4 (fat or not). Are there fat bats?
Have you ever seen fat animals? What about fat bats? The bats have no reserves of adipose tissue. These creatures have an enviable metabolism. They can digest a banana or mango in just 20 minutes.
Fact 5 (disease carriers). Is it possible contract rabies from bats?
Over the past half century, only 10 North Americans have become infected with rabies from bats. Thanks to movies and television, many people imagine bats as little monsters that infect their innocent victims with terrible diseases. But that's not true. Bats try to avoid people. Of course, if you are bitten by a bat, you should see a doctor, but it’s too early to start saving money for a funeral: most likely, you are not in danger.
Fact 6 (about good hearing). How developed hearing in bats
Bats use echolocation to avoid obstacles in the dark. Like many nocturnal animals, bats have very poor vision, so they must rely on other ways to navigate. Bats send sound signals forward and listen to the returning echo, thus determining the distance to an obstacle in their path. Of course, bats can see in daylight, but since their main life activities take place under the cover of darkness, it is more convenient for them to rely on echolocation.
Fact 7 (popularity). How many species of bats are there?
Bats represent one fourth of all mammals. Yes, you heard right. There are more than 1,100 species of bats in the world.
Fact 8 (on the verge of extinction). Why are there fewer bats?
More than half of all bat species in the United States are either listed as endangered or critically endangered. This is due to the fact that pollution and deforestation lead to the destruction of bat habitats.
Fact 9 (how not to freeze). Bats are warm
Cold night? Spend the night next to bats! Inside their caves, bats wrap their wings around them to keep warm, preventing the heat from escaping.
Fact 10 (invention of drugs and benefits). How bats help people
An anticoagulant found in the saliva of vampire bats could soon be used to treat cardiovascular disease. Scientists hope to isolate enzymes similar to those that bats inject into the wounds of their victims. Maybe bats will help find a cure for stroke.
Fact 11 (offspring). Do bats have many babies?
Bats only give birth in a year one cub. Most small mammals have many more offspring, think about rabbits () or cats.
Fact 12 (long-livers). How long do bats live?
Bats live longer than dogs. Some species can live up to 30 years. Considering that other mammals of this size live for about two years, bats can be called real centenarians.
Fact 13 (cleanliness is the key to health). Do bats keep things clean?
The bats very clean. They all spend more time on the toilet than an appearance-obsessed teenager does. Bats can spend hours grooming, licking and combing their fur.
One of the most interesting and mysterious living creatures, the true nature of which does not at all correlate with the mythical ominous rumors and ideas of our “dark” ancestors. In fact, bats are more beneficial than other members of the human race.
And we will try to talk about these amazing nocturnal animals, or more precisely, about how they live, where they spend the cold winter and when bats wake up after hibernation.
Who are they, creatures of evil or faithful helpers?
Bats (lat. Microchiroptera ) belong to the order Chiroptera of the cohort of placental mammals. These are the only animals in the world capable of prolonged flight.
This is a very extensive order in terms of species, and the sizes of its representatives range from 3 to 50 cm in length, and from 5 to 80 cm in wingspan. But we will consider as a sample not large tropical specimens, but small species inhabiting our European regions, the dimensions of which usually do not exceed the size of a sparrow or tit.
These flyers can live 5-10 years and even longer. Zoologists claim that some bats under scientific supervision lived up to 20-25 years, and this is by no means fiction.
Bats cannot be confused with any other living creature on planet Earth. They have a unique appearance that most may find repulsive and sinister.
The thin limbs of bats resemble a bone frame on which a leather membrane is stretched, forming wings. These creatures have very thick fluffy fur on the body, usually lighter in the front.
The head and muzzle have a truly bizarre structure, with which, in addition to the wings, all the fables about the otherworldly nature of these creatures in the old days were usually associated. And in some ways we can understand both our ancestors and modern, more mannered representatives of the fair sex, who are frightened by just the sight of these funny creatures on TV screens.
The muzzle resembles a pig's snout with large ears, like that devil from the well-known Soviet film adaptation of “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka” performed by G. Millyar. And two fangs protruding from the upper jaw can cause even greater fear and mistrust.
It must be said that, despite very poor eyesight, these creatures are quite nimble and perfectly oriented in space during flight. In this they are helped by echolocation, that is, the ability to catch the reflection of ultrasonic pulses from surrounding objects.
These animals feed mainly on insects, which they catch in flight with extraordinary dexterity. Tropical bats also eat fruit, and among them are vampire bloodsuckers. However, let's return to our insectivorous night flyers.
Bats are more useful animals for humans. Harm on their part may only consist of the transmission of some dangerous diseases, but this, again, applies to a greater extent to tropical species.
The benefits of bats are especially appreciated in rural areas, where overnight a flock of these creatures can greatly help a farmer who is always suffering from harmful insects.
Also, these creepy-faced flyers serve as plant pollinators, carrying plant pollen on themselves and distributing it over a wide area.
Hibernation of bats
One may wonder why in winter one cannot see the flickering shadows of bats in the frosty darkness of the night, as in summer. In fact, the question will not be very appropriate, since these creatures cannot stand the cold.
In addition, these are insectivorous animals and, in addition to the unacceptable temperature of the outdoor environment, they are faced with the problem of loss of food sources.
Most species of bats, pipistrelle bats, for example, with the onset of autumn cold weather, leave the places where they lived and fed in the summer, and migrate to warmer latitudes, such as the southern regions of China and other Asian countries, where the winter season is much milder and the temperature is not falls below 2-3 degrees above zero.
But some species of these night hunters, such as bats and long-eared bats, show real patriotism and stay for the winter.
At the same time, they stop all active activity and fall into hibernation. But it must be said that this is not a bear's endless winter. Bats may wake up from time to time in order to assess the situation, especially if it is not conducive to continuing a further stay in the monastery chosen for the winter.
But still, in the absence of irritating factors, these animals can fall into deep anabiosis and sleep soundly for 2-5 months. At the same time, the biorhythm of their life slows down very sharply. The heart rate decreases by 50 times (!), and the body temperature drops to 4 degrees, while the animal can take one breath every 10-15 seconds.
Immersion in suspended animation in bats has an exclusively protective “adaptive” nature. That is, it is the physiological adaptability of the body to change its rhythm of life during periods of unfavorable living conditions. This is how they survive during periods of lack of food and low temperatures.
Hollow trees, attics of houses, caves and dungeons, empty mines, insulated cellars and vegetable storages can serve as winter shelter for sleeping bats. Simply put, they need a place inaccessible to other living creatures with a temperature of at least 8 degrees, without drafts and with high humidity.
The duration of hibernation can vary among different species from 2-2.5 months to six months, and even longer.
Bats usually hibernate in large families, with their paws hooked onto something horizontal, hanging upside down and wrapping their wings around themselves. If you take a sleeping animal in your hands, you might think that it is dead. But after a while, having warmed up in warm hands, he will realize that he is in trouble and will definitely try to escape. Having been released, after some time he will again join his sleeping brothers.
Bats have an excellent memory, and they perfectly remember the location of that cave or that attic where they managed to safely overwinter the last cold period. They actually develop a very strong attachment to their usual hibernation place.
And we are talking here not only about a specific geographical point on the map of the area. Moreover, the researchers were able to notice that the awakened bat tries to take the very place in the “winter apartment” where it slept before awakening.
To the question of when bats wake up after terrestrial hibernation, we note that much depends on the species and specific circumstances. Representatives of the bat order, more resistant to cold, can wake up as early as March, if the beginning of spring is not too wintry and frosty. More heat-loving species, such as moths, can sleep a little longer, until mid-May, especially if the winter has been long.
At the same time, when waking up, the animals shake for some time, as it might seem from the outside. They are shaking as if with a fever, but this is not at all due to the fact that the bat is freezing. No, this is how their body warms up after winter suspended animation.
By contracting muscles, animals very quickly and sharply increase their body temperature from several degrees to 30. After which the bat begins its new summer season of active work and reproduction.
Take care of our little brothers
It should be said that the period of hibernation, especially in urban conditions, is the most dangerous and risky period in the life of bats. People often find their “winter apartments” and destroy them, driving half-asleep animals out into the cold, from which they quickly die.
Numerous explorers of caves and dungeons are also guilty of such deeds, especially where they are of historical, cultural or material interest.
Sleepy bats are absolutely defenseless in winter, and their destruction during hibernation can be called a crime.
In general, a person, as always, harms himself.
Conclusion
So we met such a wonderful and cute creature as a bat.
Living under the cover of night, the habit of hiding in secret corners during the day and sleeping hanging upside down, as well as other oddities in the behavior of these animals, have caused many myths and superstitions to arise around their persons.
In the past, they were considered vampires, and the inhabitants of past centuries were sure that they, as befits creatures of this kind, feed on the blood of people and other living organisms. And such speculations were not invented without reason.
Undoubtedly, these are very unusual creatures of nature, and their features, without exaggeration, are unique. These creatures were called bats for their small size and the sounds they made, similar to a squeak.
However, they were given all sorts of nicknames. For example, in Rus' they were called eared ears, bats, bats and much more.
Bats move by echolocation
Bat– not related to rodents animal and attributed by zoologists to the order Chiroptera. The uniqueness of these representatives of the earth's fauna, which also includes fruit bats, lies in the fact that they are the only mammals capable of moving through the air, since they have wings.
Amateurs believe that only birds can have such a useful decoration. But this is a big mistake, because it turns out that even animals can soar in the sky. And the bat is a clear confirmation of this.
But it should be noted that the wings of mammals are not at all similar to similar parts of the body of birds. In a bat, these are just wide membranes that connect the limbs of the animal, being stretched between them, that is, between the arms and their incredibly long fingers in front, as well as the legs and tail in the back.
Such wings, which make up a significant portion of the size of the entire animal, can have a span of almost a meter. But this is only for large specimens, because it is possible to give examples of representatives of this tribe the size of an insect.
It is also curious that the wings of such animals are used not only for their intended purpose. They also play the role of a kind of cloak in which these creatures wrap themselves, maintaining their warmth in bad weather.
The head of flying animals is small and round in shape. Their body is covered with dull, dark gray or brownish, in some cases other shades, fur. It can be different: thick and shaggy or short, even and sparse.
These animals practically exist in flight, so their limbs are bizarrely modified and underdeveloped, but end in strong claws. The furry tail helps bats perform complex maneuvers in flight.
The vision of such creatures is weak, and they do not feel any particular need for it, because the animals spend most of their lives in the dark. But the ears are of considerable size, and these organs perfectly capture a wide variety of, even completely indistinguishable noises.
Moreover, it is hearing that helps bats navigate in space. The squeaks they make are reflected by sound waves from surrounding objects and help bats create a picture of the existing reality in their brain.
For nesting, bats choose dark, quiet places where they can hide from the sun.
This method of perceiving objects is called echolocation.
Types of bats
What class does a bat belong to?, we have already found out. Despite their strange appearance and unique features, such creatures are still mammals. Their suborder bears the same name as the animals themselves, that is: bats.
A detailed study of their species is complicated due to the hidden lifestyle that these creatures are accustomed to leading. But currently there are about seven hundred varieties of such flying animals.
Is it true that they are vampires? If we divide bats by type of food, then there are such species on Earth, but there are only three of them. However, they are extremely interesting and therefore deserve special description.
- The ordinary vampire is a very famous species, which has become the hero of many stories, and is also numerous. Its representatives are also called large bloodsuckers and live on the American continent in countries such as Uruguay, Argentina, and Mexico.
These creatures live up to their name by appearing quite sinister. They often unite into large colonies of individuals and settle in secluded caves. There they hide in the daytime in the company of their fellow creatures, falling asleep in an upside down position. And they go out to hunt exclusively at night, attacking large livestock, sometimes even humans.
Also, small groups of these creatures can take a liking to abandoned mines, hollows of large trees, and even the attics of dilapidated buildings. But for all their sinister ways, the size of these animals is very small, and they weigh only no more than 50 g.
- The white-winged vampire, like the previous variety, is found on the American continent, in its central and southern regions. But these creatures are slightly smaller than ordinary vampires and only attack birds.
They are distinguished by a brownish-red shade of fur, their abdomen is slightly lighter.
- The furry-legged vampire is a resident of the same region. These representatives of the fauna are interesting because they are not afraid of people at all, they can let you get close to them and allow them to pick you up.
But they have a habit of approaching their victims completely unnoticed. And both animals and birds can become victims. The fur of such animals is brown-gray.
Their characteristics also include the absence of too acute hearing, inherent in other relatives. Such animals have more developed vision.
A furry-legged vampire can fly close to people without fear
Unlike fellow vampires, other species of bats are completely harmless creatures. They do not feed on blood, but exclusively on plants or insects.
Although there are those who are often confused with blood-sucking fellow tribesmen, and therefore treat them with caution. But the appearance of herbivorous and insectivorous specimens also has interesting features, just as their behavior is distinguished by striking individual characteristics. Therefore, some of them are also worthy of a detailed description.
- The false vampire is the largest representative of this type of mammal. It should be noted that real vampires are much smaller in size. The wingspan of such a creature averages about 70 cm.
These individuals feed exclusively on amphibians, lizards, various insects and plant fruits. In appearance, this species differs from its relatives in the more pointed shape of its ears.
The body of such animals is covered with brown or gray fur. The paws have soft pads and hook-shaped claws.
False vampire is a large representative of bats
- The giant noctule is common in Europe. These chiropteran creatures also live in the Russian expanses, where they are considered the largest among their tribe. Their wingspan in some cases reaches half a meter, and their weight averages 75 g.
What makes these representatives of the fauna very remarkable is not only their impressive size, but also their bright color; it can be brown or red. Their bellies, as is usual with most bats, are noticeably lighter.
To live, the animals choose tree hollows and feed on insects. In cold weather they fly to warmer regions.
- The hog-nosed bat is so small that it can easily be confused with a bumblebee. And such creatures weigh only 2 g. They are inhabitants of some islands of Asia and Thailand, considered endemic to these regions.
They hunt small insects, gathering in flocks. The color is dark brown, in some cases with a grayish tint. Their nose looks like a pig's snout, for which these creatures earned their name.
- Great harelip. This species of bat is interesting for its special diet and taste preferences. And they feed on small fish, frogs and crayfish, settling near water bodies.
Moreover, unlike their relatives, they can hunt during the daytime. The appearance of the animals is also remarkable, resembling the structure of the muzzle and ears. Their fur is red and very bright.
The weight is rather large - about 80 g. They live in the northern regions of Argentina and the south of Mexico, as well as on some islands with a similar climate.
Great harelip bat
- The brown long-eared bat is found in Eurasia and northern Africa. From cold places it flies in winter to warmer regions. It has a not very striking color, usually brown-gray, and a body weight of only 12 g, but it has very large ears.
It should be noted that their length sometimes exceeds the size of the body. And it is these organs that provide the animal with the ability to hear all sounds perfectly. And this allows the animal to accurately navigate in pitch darkness during a night hunt.
The presence of large ears gave the bat its name - brown long-eared bat
Lifestyle and habitat
In the culture and myths of many peoples, such animals usually appear as sinister negative characters. The ancients associated them not only with vampires, but also with other evil spirits: werewolves, sorcerers, witches.
These creatures personified darkness and death, but that is why totem animal bat serves as a completely opposite symbol - rebirth: the rejection of everything that has become obsolete, the death of old habits and concepts, and therefore the entry into a new life.
If we list the areas of the planet where such representatives of the fauna settled, we should mention almost all of them, skipping only the edges of eternal snow and ice, as well as some islands surrounded by the ocean, since these flyers simply could not get there.
Zoologists believe that a bat can take root almost anywhere, in any climate and in a wide variety of conditions. The only thing she really needs is a quiet shelter where she can hide from the hated sunlight during the day.
Such creatures also do not tolerate noise and fuss, but even in large cities they can take a liking to some little-visited attic, even in a residential building. Therefore, they can rightfully be presented like pets. Bat has no fear of humans.
But some of the people are afraid of such guests, it’s just prejudice. However, this does not prevent exotic lovers from keeping these interesting creatures as pets.
In the wild, for example, in some spacious, mysterious cave, colonies of these animals can number in the tens of thousands of members, and even millions of individuals. In such a shelter they rest during the day, attaching their tenacious claws to the ledges, hanging upside down like ripe fruit.
But despite numerous aggregations and associations into communities, bats cannot be called social animals. Their social urges do not manifest themselves in any way. They communicate little with their relatives. They just sleep together during the day, that's all. And they hunt alone at night.
If bats live in regions with unfavorable climate, in winter they often go in search of nicer and warmer places. And such journeys sometimes take place thousands of kilometers away. But sometimes these creatures prefer to simply go into normal hibernation.
Bats can gather in columns of millions
Nutrition
The structure of the teeth in each of the representatives of this suborder is different and directly depends on the feeding method of a particular variety. Blood-sucking species have few teeth, only 20 pieces, but they are famous for their long fangs. Other bats have 38 of them.
However, their teeth are blunter and serve more likely to grind rough food that enters the mouth. Some blood-sucking species are able to cause significant harm to their victims, because the enzymes that enter the victim’s blood along with the saliva of attacking animals during a bite can provoke significant blood loss.
And if the attack is carried out by a whole group, for example, ordinary vampires, a fatal outcome is more than likely.
As already mentioned, night for such creatures is the time of hunting, and their active life begins with the last ray of the setting sun. These flying mammals do not see their victims, but hear them, catching their slightest movement.
Insectivorous species, in addition to winged little things and crawling insects, are capable of eating rain fish, small fish, and frogs. There are also enough species that eat exclusively fruits and drink flower nectar.
Reproduction and lifespan
It is difficult for scientists to find out in detail how exactly the courtship and subsequent mating of these creatures occurs; they prefer to lead a very secretive lifestyle.
Some bats can feed on flower nectar
But at certain periods, very interesting sounds can be heard near the habitats of bats. These are the courtship of gentlemen for their ladies and their calls for love.
Bats inhabiting regions with favorable conditions and a warm climate are ready for mating rituals at any time and are able to give birth to offspring twice a year. In areas with harsh weather conditions, mating of these winged mammals occurs immediately before hibernation.
And this reveals another feature of these animals. Bat, or rather a female individual of this suborder, is not able to become pregnant immediately, but some time after contact with a partner.
After all, according to nature’s plan, her eggs will be fertilized only after spring awakening. Until this moment, the male’s sperm remains, as it were, in her body in reserve.
The duration of gestation is also impossible to say with precision, because the timing turns out to be too different. And they depend not only on the species, but also on environmental conditions, in particular temperature.
But when the time comes, two or three cubs are born. At first they live in the tail pouch. And a week later they get out of there, but continue to live, feeding on mother’s milk.
In this way, the babies gradually gain strength, and after a month they are already able to feed on their own.
It is difficult to answer the question: what is the lifespan of these creatures, because it depends on the species to which these bats belong. On average it is 5 years, but can be 20 or more years.
It is interesting that when kept at home, such animals do not live longer, as is observed in most living creatures, but, on the contrary, shorter. This is due to the inability to behave with the desired activity and in accordance with natural cycles. And this has an extremely detrimental effect on their bodies.
Bats (lat. Microchiroptera) is a name that summarizes all representatives of the order Chiroptera, except fruit bats. For a long time, bats were considered only as a suborder, but karyological and molecular genetic data have proven that the group is a composite one.
Description of the bat
Bats have lived on our planet for several tens of millions of years, and finds of the skeleton of such an animal date back to the Eocene period. According to scientists, the ancient creatures were practically no different from modern individuals, but the appearance of their ability to fly has still not found a scientific explanation.
Appearance
Despite the obvious differences between representatives of different species of bats in size and external characteristics, there are many characteristics that unite them. The body of bats is covered with fur, which has lighter shades in the abdominal area. The wingspan of such an animal varies between 15-200 cm. The shape of the wings can be very different, including variations in length and width, but their structure is always the same. The animal's wings with leathery membranes are equipped with muscles and elastic veins, due to which they are pressed tightly against the body at rest.
This is interesting! Bats fly using membranous wings that move in sync with their hind limbs.
The forelimbs of bats are quite well developed, including strong short shoulders and very long forearms formed by a single radius bone. There is a hooked claw on the thumb of the forelimb, and other rather long fingers support the membranes of the wings, which are located on the sides.
The average length of the tail and the shape of the body directly depend on the species of the individual. The presence of a so-called bony outgrowth, called a “spur,” allows many species to quite easily unfold their wings all the way to the tail.
Lifestyle and behavior
Almost all bats, along with other bats, prefer a nocturnal lifestyle, so during the daytime they sleep, hanging upside down or hiding in the cracks of rocks, trees and buildings. Sufficient-sized cavities inside trees, caves and grottoes, as well as a variety of artificial above-ground and underground structures can be considered as a refuge for representatives of the class Mammals and the order Chiroptera.
A bat is capable of falling into a state of torpor, which is accompanied by a decrease in the rate of metabolic processes, a slowdown in breathing intensity and a decrease in heart rate. Many representatives of the species fall into a long period of seasonal hibernation, sometimes lasting eight months. The ability to easily independently regulate the metabolic rate in the body allows insectivorous bats to go without eating for a long time.
This is interesting! During normal movement, adult bats can easily reach a speed of 15 km/h, but during the hunt the animal accelerates to 60 km/h.
Representatives of many species live in different natural environments, but the habits of bats are surprisingly similar. Such animals do not build nests, but a solitary lifestyle is characteristic of only a few species. During the resting process, bats try to carefully care for their appearance, so they carefully clean their wings, abdomen and chest. Indicators of mobility outside the summer period depend on species characteristics, so some representatives are characterized by some helplessness, and many bats can climb quite well and move quite actively with the help of tenacious paws.
How long do bats live?
Bats of any species are able to live quite a long time compared to many other animals of the Mammal class. For example, the average officially recorded life expectancy of the brown bat today is thirty years or more.
Types of bats
There are a great many species of bats, and varieties of bats are characterized by different skull structures and number of teeth:
- Tailless or– one of the smallest animals in size, up to 45 mm long. The echolocator animal lives in Honduras and countries in Central America. Eats fruits. Individuals are united into families, most often consisting of five and six heads;
- Hog-nosed bats– animals with a tailless body length of up to 33 mm and a weight of 2.0 g. The nose resembles a pig’s snout in appearance. They live mainly in Thailand and neighboring countries, where they live in limestone caves. Animals feed in bamboo and teak thickets;
- Evening bat- a representative of one of the largest families in the form of thirteen subspecies. The animal has become widespread in North Africa and European countries, where it lives in dense deciduous plantings. The length of a large bat is half a meter. Hunts at dusk and in the pre-dawn time for butterflies, beetles and some birds;
- Bat dog and fox or "fruit mouse"- a whole species of fruit bat mice with an elongated muzzle. The length of a large adult animal is 40-42 cm, weighs up to a kilogram and has a wingspan of up to 70 cm. The harmless animal feeds on fruit pulp and flower nectar. Inhabits the countries of tropical Asia;
- Smooth-nosed bats- a family represented by three hundred varieties, which are distinguished by a smooth muzzle without cartilaginous growths. Our country is home to just under forty species, which go into hibernation with the onset of winter;
- Ushany- bats with large locator ears, short and wide wings. Body length does not exceed 50-60 mm. The diet consists of butterflies, mosquitoes, beetles and other nocturnal insects;
- Bulldog bat– the animal has special narrow, rather long and pointed wings, which allows it to perform high swings during flight. The body length is only 4-14 cm. They live in tropical zones, where they form colonies with different numbers of individuals.
Range, habitats
The range and habitats of bats almost completely coincide with the distribution area of all representatives of the order Chiroptera. Most bats have their own special territories used for hunting and obtaining food, so representatives of the order Chiroptera very often fly along the same route.
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