Bats
All About Bats
BATS ARE THE ONLY mammals that can fly. Most are active at night, or at dawn and dusk. During the day they rest by hanging upside down in roosts. Most bats known as microbats-eat flving insects, but some feed small mammals, fish, or even blood. Megabats, or fruit bats, include the largest bats. They feed mostly on fruit. Female bats gather in a special nursery roost to give birth to their pink, naked babies.
Different types of bats have different structures of the skull, and the number of teeth also varies and largely depends on the diet of a particular species. For example, a tailless long-tongued leaf-bearer that feeds on nectar has an elongated front part
Nature has wisely made it so that he has somewhere to hold his long tongue, which in turn is necessary for getting food. But predatory bats that feed on insects already have the so-called heterodont dental system, which includes incisors, canines, and molars. Small bats that eat even smaller insects have up to 38 small teeth, while large vampire bats have only 20.
The fact is that vampires do not need many teeth, since they do not chew food. But they have sharp fangs that make a bleeding wound on the body of the victim. Traditionally, bats, and almost all species, have large ears, which are responsible, among other things, for their amazing echolocation abilities.
The forelimbs of bats evolved into wings over a long period of evolution. Elongated fingers began to serve as the frame of the wing. But the first finger with a claw remains free. With its help, flying mice can even eat and perform various other actions, although, in some of them, such as smoke flying mice, it is not functional.
The speed of a bat depends on the shape and structure of its wing. They, in turn, can be very long, or vice versa with a slight elongation. Wings with a lower aspect ratio do not allow them to develop greater speed, but they can be perfectly maneuvered, which is very useful for bats that live in the forest, and which often have to fly among the crowns of trees.
NURSERY ROOST
Young bats huddle together for warmth while their mothers leave the nursery roost to hunt for food. On their return, each mother can identify her own offspring from the huddle by the sound it makes.
FRUIT BAT
While most bats use a kind of sonar, fruit bats use their keen sense of smell and large eyes to find food. Most fruit bats, also known as flying foxes, have fruit-only diets, while some species feed on flowers, nectar, and pollen.
IN FLIGHT
The bat uses its wings to fly after and catch its prey. The wings are pulled downward by muscles in the chest and upper arm, and raised by muscles on the back. They enable the bat to move through the air and turn at high speed. The wing membrane between the legs may be used to catch and hold insects until the bat is ready to eat its prey.
WINTER SLEEP
Bats that live in colder parts of the world, such as these lesser horseshoe bats, go into a winter sleep called hibernation. They do this to survive through the cold winter months when there are no insects to eat. Bats hibernate in a special roost – such as a cave or loft space-where they will not freeze.
BAT SONAR
Most bats – apart from fruit bats-use a kind of “sonar” that helps them to find their way in the dark and pinpoint moving prey, such as moths. They send out bursts of very high-pitched clicks through their mouths or noses.
When these sounds bounce off the bat’s surroundings, it picks up the echoes using its ears. This process is called echolocation. It gives the bat a “sound picture” of its surroundings, and helps it avoid obstacles such as trees.
BLOOD FEEDER
Vampire bats use their set of needlelike teeth to feed on blood. They leave their roost at night to find sleeping victims, such as cattle and horses. Once a victim is found, the bat uses its incisor teeth to cut out a piece of hairless skin. It then uses its grooved tongue to lap up the flow of blood.
