What is a bat. A winged riddle - a bat: what it looks like, a photo, why they sleep upside down and other features of a mammal. Where do bats live

Bat has long terrified people. Many legends and stories are made up around their unusual way of life and appearance. Their sharp teeth and nocturnal flight combined to create the illusion of potential danger when encountering them. However, in reality, everything is not so, and only some rare species living in certain places feed on the blood of large mammals. The rest are content with insects and have nothing to do with vampirism.

Origin of the species and description

Bats are primarily amazing in that they move through the air, flapping their wings like birds. However, they do this exclusively at night, without using one of the main senses - vision. Of course, they are not birds, because they themselves are viviparous and feed their young with milk. Yes, and they have nothing in common with birds, except for the ability to fly, even feathers.

Video: Bat

Bats belong to the class of mammals in the order Chiroptera. There are a huge variety of them. According to various sources, from 600 to 1000 species of bats are distinguished. Of course, it is impossible to consider each species separately without being a specialist in these animals.

The main types, the most common and having clear differences, can be counted on the fingers, namely:

• two-tone leather;
• giant evening party;
• white leaf-bearing;
• pig-nosed bat;
• large harelip;
• water night;
• brown earflaps;
• dwarf bat;
• ordinary vampire;
• white-winged vampire;
• fluffy vampire.

It is believed that the first bats appeared about 70 million years ago, when small arboreal mammals began to develop membranes on the sides, which later evolved into wings. It is possible that the cause of the formation of membranes was a gene mutation. Scientists believe that the change in the structure of the body of animals occurred quite quickly, since today not a single individual of a transitional species has been found. That is, there was a so-called high-speed evolution.

Appearance and features

Bats are quite small. The weight of the representative of the smallest species, the pig-nosed bat, is about 2 grams, while the body length of the individual is only 33 mm. This is one of the smallest representatives in general among the animal kingdom. The largest bat is the giant pseudo-vampire, with a wingspan of 75 cm and an adult body weight ranging from 150 to 200 grams.

Different types of bats differ from each other in appearance and skull structure. But they all have common external features. The main difference from many animals are wings. They are thin membranes stretched between the front and rear limbs. The wings of bats differ significantly from the wings of birds. They do not have feathers, but have long fingers, to which the membranes are attached.

An interesting fact: the wings are used not only for flying, but also as a blanket during sleep. Bats wrap themselves in them to keep warm.

Their hind limbs are also different. They are deployed to the sides, with the knee joints back. The hind limbs are very developed. With their help, bats can hang upside down for a long time. Moreover, it is in this position that they sleep.

Almost all bats have large ears. Which is not surprising for an animal that does not have good eyesight. Ears are used by bats for echolocation and spatial orientation. The animal emits high-frequency subtle sounds, which are reflected from all objects and then perceived by the animal itself. The ears are equipped with a large network of blood vessels that feed them. The eyes of bats, on the contrary, are very small in size. Vision is monochrome and not sharp. Although there are exceptions, for example, the California leaf-bearer relies more on its eyesight than on hearing during hunting.

Most species of bats are dull in color. They are usually brown or gray, sometimes dark gray. This is due to the need to be unnoticed while hunting at night. There are also exceptions, for example, some species have white or bright red colors. The hairline of animals is thick, single-tiered. At the same time, the skin membrane is covered with very sparse hair.

Where does the bat live?

Bats are distributed everywhere, with the exception of the polar latitudes, starting from the tundra. There, mice simply have nowhere to hide from harsh climatic conditions, and there is also no necessary amount of food. Among the snows, especially bats, it is not comfortable to exist, even considering the fact that they are able to hibernate.

The most important condition for their existence is the presence of a shelter that will allow them to hide daily during daylight hours and sleep. These can be, as is well known, caves. Bats are simply attached to the ceiling of the cave with their paws upside down and spend daylight hours there. At dusk, they begin to fly out to hunt. It is very interesting that flying out of the cave, bats always fly to the left.

According to the number of mice living in the caves, they promise an accumulation of their droppings on the lower part of the stone niche. Often its accumulation is about a meter.

If there are no caves nearby, then other shelters will do, in nature these are trees: mice find secluded places between twigs, fruits or in dense foliage. The most important thing for them is that sunlight does not fall on them. In towns and villages, it is even easier for bats to find shelter - any attic of a residential building will suit them. They are not afraid of people and calmly settle in their houses.

What does a bat eat?

Despite tales of vampirism and the use of bats in horror films such as From Dusk Till Dawn or Dracula, these creatures are completely harmless. They cannot bite a person. However, do not touch bats - they can carry diseases dangerous to humans or pets, such as rabies.

Most species of bats feed on insects: they are able to eat up to 200 mosquitoes in an hour of hunting. If we consider the ratio of the weight of the animal and the amount of food eaten, then quite a lot comes out, about a fifth of its own weight.

Some species of bats are larger, it is not enough for them to eat small insects and they are carnivores - they eat frogs, lizards, small birds and. There are several types of bats that feed on fish.

Blood-sucking bats, the so-called vampires, feed on the warm blood of animals, usually they bite livestock. Bites are painless for animals, because together with saliva they secrete a substance that has an analgesic effect. However, they can be dangerous as they carry various diseases that can even kill the animal.

There are also many types of bats that feed on plant foods:

• flower pollen;
• tree fruits (usually dates, bananas, mangoes);
• flowers.

Such bats. They live in hot tropical countries where all year round vegetation abounds. Now people are trying to keep exotic animals at home. The bat is no exception and is in demand in the pet market. But, if you are not an expert, you should not do this.

Since these pets are very specific. They require huge returns and strictly defined conditions. From food, carnivores can eat sliced ​​\u200b\u200bmeat or offal of birds or animals, herbivores should be fed fruits, and drink water and milk. Also, as a treat, the owners treated the animals to condensed milk.

Features of character and lifestyle

Bats are nocturnal. During the day they sleep, and at the same time they usually hide in various shelters, including underground. They are very fond of caves, tree hollows, earthen burrows, as well as quarries and mines, they can hide under tree branches and under bird nests.

They usually live in small colonies of several dozen individuals. Although there are more populated colonies, including those consisting of several different subspecies of bats. The record for the number of today is considered to be a colony of Brazilian folded lips, consisting of 20 million individuals.

AT winter period Most bats hibernate. But some are capable of migrating like birds to warmer climes, covering distances of up to 1000 km. Hibernation, depending on the area, can reach 8 months.

Hibernation occurs upside down by hanging on hind legs. This turns out to be convenient so that you can immediately go on a flight, spending less effort and time. No energy is spent on hanging due to the structural features of the limbs.

Interesting fact: on the island of Borneo there is a unique carnivorous plant that attracts bats with special sounds. But it does not eat them, but rather provides bats with its inflorescences as a refuge. Animals leave their excrement to the plant, which it uses as fertilizer. In nature, such a symbiosis is unique.

For orientation in space and for hunting, echolocation is used, which helps them maneuver, control the flight altitude and the distance to the cave walls. It is believed that during the hunt, bats become aware not only of the distance to the pursued target, but also the direction of its flight, and even what kind of prey it belongs to.

Social structure and reproduction

Living together in a colony does not make bats gregarious. Animals do not perform any joint actions and also hunt exclusively alone. They also do not create families. Two individuals unite only at the moment of mating, and then immediately forget about each other.

Most bats that live in temperate climates start breeding in the spring. Usually there are two to five cubs in a litter, but the exact number is highly dependent on environmental conditions. The female produces offspring once a year. She feeds her young until they develop wings. Growing up in different subspecies lasts different times.

For small subspecies of bats, a period of 6 to 8 weeks is typical until they become independent. For large subspecies of animals, this period can be up to four months. In the first week, the female usually takes the cub with her for night hunting. At the same time, he clings tightly to his mother during the flight. In the weeks that follow, he gets heavy, so she leaves him in the shelter for the duration of the hunt.

An interesting fact: female bats have the ability to control their pregnancy time, as well as delay the birth of offspring. This is necessary for them so that the offspring are born at a time when the amount of food is maximum. Very often, mating occurs in the fall, but fertilization occurs only in the spring.

The lifespan of bats directly depends on the specific subspecies. Most bats live 20 years, but there are subspecies with a lifespan of no more than 5 years.

Natural enemies of bats

Bats have quite a few enemies. This is primarily due to their small size and nocturnal lifestyle, when much larger predators go hunting. For them, bats serve as excellent prey.

Among the predators that are especially dangerous for bats, it is fashionable to single out the following:

• owls;
• candles;
• falcon, and other birds of prey;
• rats;
• predatory fish;
• ferrets.

Not only do they get poisoned from these procedures at home, they also lose some of the food. Insects that live in the area also die from these poisons, and mice may not have enough food. Therefore, it is believed that bats do not live easily, and they need additional protection from humans. However, a specific lifestyle does not even allow this, because these animals are selective, and it is difficult to follow them.

Population and species status

Most of the bat species are endangered. Some subspecies have the status of vulnerable, requiring constant monitoring.

Basically, the population in the 20th century was negatively affected by the development Agriculture, environmental pollution, and habitat loss. But at the same time, there were facts of deliberate extermination, destruction of nests and treatment of roofs and attics of houses with repellents. Studies have also been conducted in the United States that have shown that wind farms also affect the number of bats. Bats are killed by collisions with wind turbine blades and from lung damage due to pressure drops near the blades.

But since bats are central to the ecosystem, measures are being taken to protect them. In Europe, they are in fact the only natural regulator of the number of insects that are nocturnal. Thanks to efforts to protect bats, the populations of certain subspecies have stabilized, and some have increased.

The European Environment Agency, based on a study of about 6,000 nesting sites, concluded that the number of bats increased by 43% between 1993 and 2011. But these are average figures, and, unfortunately, the number of some subspecies continues to decline.

Bat guard

In countries European Union all bat species are protected in accordance with EU directives and international conventions. Russia has also signed all international agreements on the protection of bats. Many of them are included in the Red Book. According to Russian law, not only the bats themselves are subject to protection, but also their habitats and shelters. In particular, even the bodies of sanitary supervision and veterinary control cannot take any measures in relation to the settlements of bats in the city.

As measures for the protection of bats, the existence of animal settlements and their migration routes are taken into account during the construction of wind parks. Supervision is carried out in protected areas and informing visitors to protected areas about the rules established for the protection of bats. Reduced artificial lighting in their habitats.

To inform citizens about the need to protect animals and to draw people's attention to the problem of their protection, the environmental holiday "International Night of Bats" is celebrated annually on September 21. In Europe, the night of bats has been celebrated for almost 20 years. It has been running in our country since 2003.

Bats belong to the order Chiroptera. It means that both forelimbs are turned into large wings, and strongly elongated fingers serve as a frame for them.

Such a structure does not allow them to soar like birds, forcing them to constantly flap their wings.

The flight speed of bats can vary from 15 km / h with simple movement, up to 60 km/h while catching insects.

Another one distinguishing feature these animals - landing method. In a short period of time, bats need to slow down and land on a horizontal surface head down. They don't make nests..

REFERENCE! They feed on the fly, catching various insects right in the air. Usually one animal can catch up to 200 mosquitoes in an hour.

You can learn more about what bats eat.

A photo

You can take a closer look at the bats in the photo with the names of the species.

White bat in the photo:

Bulldog Bat:

Bat dog fruity:

Smooth-nosed bat:

Bat bat:

Horseshoe Nose Bat:

Pig-nosed bat in the photo:

Ushan bat:

Bat vampire in the photo:

Party bat:

Varieties

White

Tailless or Honduran white bat - one of the little ones families. In addition to Honduras, he also lives in Central America - Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama.

Body - up to 4.5 cm long, small ears, nose unusual shape. Through it, animals produce echolocation - such a structure makes it possible to focus and amplify the signals sent.

They live under large sheets of heliconia, gnawing holes in them so that the ends, hanging down, form a tent. eat fruit.

Usually a family of 5-6 bats lives under one leaf, but sometimes several families unite into a large clan. females give birth one cub per year.

pig-nosed

Pig-nosed bat or bumblebee mouse was discovered in 1973. The bat got its second name due to its size - body no more than 3.3 cm, and weight - up to 2 grams. This is the smallest bat.

In addition, on the muzzle there is a characteristic pig nose. The ears are large, but unlike other animals of the family, the pig-nosed mouse does not have a tail.

Basic habitat - Thailand and some neighboring lands. Lives in limestone caves, flies out to hunt in groups of 4-5 animals.

Do not move more than 1 km from the place of residence. Looking for insects in bamboo thickets or teak. There is no exact data on reproduction; most likely, the female brings one cub per year.

Vechernitsa

Vespers is one of the largest genera of bats, which includes 8 species and 13 subspecies. live in Europe and North Africa, where are the largest bats from their own kind.

Body length - from 10 to 50 cm. It lives mainly in deciduous forests, does not settle in treeless spaces.

Hunts at dusk and dawn preferring beetles and butterflies. The largest parties are gigantic, can eat small songbirds.

REFERENCE! They are the fastest flyers - they can reach speeds of up to 60 km / h, rising to a height of up to 100 meters.

Sensitive to frost, therefore, with the onset of cold weather, they migrate over distances of up to 1000 km. Females bring one or two, rarely three cubs.

Flying dog and fox

Flying dogs or flying foxes, the fruit bat is the common name for a whole species of animal, fruit bats.

In fact, they are not insectivorous bats, but closer in structure and development to herbivorous primates.

The main differences from each other - food consumed, structure of the wing, the use of echolocation in mice and vision in fruit bats.

These animals not found in Russia, their main place of residence is Asian rainforests Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, Laos and other countries.

They got the nickname "flying dogs" because of characteristic elongated muzzle. Adult fruit bats are large - body up to 42 cm, wings up to 1.7 meters. Weight up to 900 grams.

They live in large colonies, settling in trees. Eat tropical fruits, especially like bananas, papaya, coconuts, grapes and others.

Because of their gastronomic preferences, fruit bats are called "fruit mice". The fruits are not eaten, but only suck the juice and pulp out of them.

IMPORTANT! A flock of fruit bats can cause significant damage to a farm by “eating” fruits on all the trees in the garden.

Animals sleep upside down. You can often see a picture when on cold nights one wing is used as a blanket, wrapping the whole body, and in the heat - instead of a fan.

The female has one cub per year.

smooth-nosed

Smooth-nosed bats are a large family that includes more than 318 species.

They got their name due to the fact that they do not have any characteristic distinguishing features, the muzzle is smooth without cartilaginous outgrowths.

The smooth-nosed family includes leather, bats, evenings, earflaps and many others.

Live all over the world where there is woody vegetation. In Russia, there are 37 species of such mice.

They are active at dusk or at night when hunting for various insects. Separate types of night bats eat fish.

Hibernation occurs during the cold season, but some (like Vespers) fly away to warmer places (?). Females give birth once in a season, 1-2, less often 3-4 individuals.

ushan

Ushans are a type of bats that have ears big size used for echolocation. In sleeping animals, they hide under folded wings.

Thanks to short, but wide wings, this animal can flutter and even briefly hover in the air to hunt insects. Body length - 5-6 cm.

Distributed throughout the continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, in the northern part of Asia, in North Africa.

They feed on mosquitoes, night butterflies, beetles, and other similar insects. The female gives birth to one, less often two cubs during the year.

Nightlight

Bats or short-eared bats are a species of smooth-nosed bats.

REFERENCE! The main difference from all similar animals is a very late departure for hunting, after complete darkness. At the same time, the flight itself is slow and calm.

Body length - 3.5-8.5 cm. common around the world except for the arctic regions.

In general, they are the only species that has adapted to life in absolutely any natural conditions, even disastrous for other bats. In Russia, there are about 19 species.

They feed on nocturnal insects. The female brings one, less often two cubs during the year.

Horseshoe bats

Horseshoe bats are a species of bats that were so named because of cartilage around the nose that looks like a horseshoe.

Such a structure is necessary for echolocation, the signals of which are emitted through the nostrils. common in the eastern hemisphere, in Russia they live only in the Caucasus.

eat insects, which are hunted in flight. They may hang in place for a short time.

They fly out to hunt about half an hour after sunset, and show activity first half of the night. Females give birth to only one cub during the year.

Bulldog

Bulldog bats are a family that is different from all other tribesmen more developed wings- they are narrow, long and pointed.

Because of this, the frequency of strokes is slightly higher than in other mice. Average body length - 4-14.5 cm. Live in tropical areas both hemispheres.

They can form groups from several tens to millions of individuals. The flight is fast, the echoes are very high intensity.

Some species can produce 3 offspring per year, consisting of one cub each time.

Vampire

IMPORTANT! They are dangerous to people and pets, because during the bite they can transmit rabies and various infectious diseases.

They only eat fresh blood other animals or birds, may occasionally attack and on sleeping people.

Echolocation is poorly developed, during the hunt they rely more on excellent hearing and infrared receptors. With the help of the latter, the least protected area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe skin is determined.

Video

A short film about the types of bats and their life features:

If you find an error, please highlight a piece of text and click Ctrl+Enter.

A bat is a mammal that belongs to placental mammals, a species of bats, is rightfully considered the most mysterious animal. On the one hand, the bat is the only mammal that can move through the air; on the basis of this ability, they claimed that it was a bird. But, on the other hand, they are viviparous, they feed their young with milk, which birds do not do.

The nocturnal lifestyle of these animals and frightening appearance created many legends around them, and some are absolutely convinced that the little animals sleeping upside down in secluded places are real vampires who hunt people and animals to drink their blood. Not everything in these legends is fiction.

The very name "bat" appeared in Russian only at the beginning of the 17th century, thanks to the translation of a German book. This literary variant took root, and that is how the animals of the chiroptera order began to be called.

In Russia, there were other names: bat, kozhan, evening, nocturnal, horseshoe, long-eared, arrow-eared, pipe-nosed and others. All reflect the external sign of these mammals or the peculiarities of their lifestyle.

The same is observed in the modern name. Animals with no kinship with a detachment of rodents, very much resemble them in appearance. Yes, and the sound of a bat is similar to the squeak of rodents, and the ability to fly adds a definition that has become the name of the order of bats.

What do bats look like?

It is believed that every fourth mammal on earth belongs to the chiroptera order. Despite the species differences, they all have common external features.

Wings

The main distinguishing feature of these animals are wings. It was because of the presence that the disputes continued for a long time: the bat is still a bird or an animal.

The wings are thin membranes that are stretched between the front and rear limbs. Unlike birds, bats do not have feathers, and the membranes are attached to the very long fingers of the forelimbs.

The wingspan, depending on the species, can vary from 16 cm to 1.5 m. Despite the apparent fragility, they are able to withstand significant loads and reach a flight speed of up to 20 km / h.

Flight is not the only purpose of wings. During sleep, bats wrap themselves in them, and thus their warmth is preserved.

Bat Skeleton

The body of animals is relatively small: the spine is much shorter than the modified forelimbs with five fingers with sharp claws. The animal does not have strong limbs, the humerus is shortened, so its movement on the ground is minimal, the main thing for them is flight.

The skull is rounded, with a short anterior part in some species and an elongated one in others. If you look at bats, then the calf is practically invisible. It seems that they consist of a head and wings.

Animals have a tail that is not covered with hair. For most, it serves as a device for maneuvering during flight.

Ears

Ears play an important role in the life of an animal that does not have sharp eyesight. In almost all species, they are huge.

Numerous networks of blood vessels feed the ears, since their participation in the life of bats provides them with the ability to move and hunt.

Animals make subtle sounds, which, starting from objects, return. This method of orientation in the world is called echolocation. The ability to catch even the quietest sounds with lightning speed helps bats fly at night, hear the movement of potential prey.

Violations in the work of the hearing organs most often leads to the death of the animal.

Eyes

Bats are nocturnal, which in the process of evolution has affected their vision. Small eyes in almost all species are located in front of the muzzle.

The animals of this detachment see everything in black and white. Since the bat sleeps during the day in shelters, its eyes react very poorly to sunlight.

But even for these animals there are exceptions. Thus, the California leaf-bearer sometimes relies more on sight than on hearing during hunting.

If a bat lives like a pet, then you have noticed that it rarely flies into a room in which the light is on, and to catch it, it is enough to turn on the light bulb, and the animal immediately stops flying.

Teeth

Absolutely all chiropterans have teeth: incisors, molars and premolars, canines can be observed in the jaw. But their number, size and structure depend solely on what bats eat in natural environment.

Those bats whose diet consists of insects have up to 38 teeth, and the length of their fangs can also be different. Bloodsucking mice typically have 20 teeth in their jaws and are not as large or as developed as their insectivorous cousins.

The shape of the teeth is adapted to what bats eat in nature. So in insectivorous animals, the teeth resemble mortars that grind coarse food. But only those who feed on blood have long fangs.

Wool

Most species of bats have a soft color: brown, gray, dark gray. This is due to the need to remain unnoticed during night hunting. But even among these animals there are real fashionistas: the Mexican fish-eating species has bright orange or yellow fur. There are bats in shades of which there are light colors: fawn, light yellow.

The Honduran white bat boasts a white coat and bright yellow ears and nose.

The quality of the coating may also vary. There are animals with thick and sparse fur, long and short pile.

Bat species (insectivorous and herbivorous)

The study of the life of bats is complicated by their secrecy, but scientists were able to establish that on this moment About 700 species of these animals have been recorded. We will talk about some of them in more detail.

The habitat of representatives of this species is almost all countries of Eurasia. You can meet it on the territory of Russia, from southern Siberia to the western borders. They live in mountain ranges, and in forests, and in the steppes. Some animals of this species easily inhabit even the attics of houses in large cities.

The body length of these bats is up to 6.5 cm, and the wingspan is 33 cm. At the same time, they weigh up to 23 grams. Such dimensions allow us to say that the two-color leather is a fairly large bat.

The original color of the animal determined its name: the ears, muzzle and wings are almost black, the back is dark brown, and the abdomen is light gray or white.

Bicolor leathers feed on nocturnal insects.

These bats live in the European part. The giant evening bat is the largest bat living in Russia. Its body length reaches 11 cm, weight - 70-80 grams, and wingspan - 45-50 cm.

The animal does not have a bright color: usually they are brown or reddish-brown, the abdomen is noticeably lighter than the back. But it is quite difficult not to notice the flight of these creatures, since their size is impressive.

Observing the life of the evening, it was established that these bats eat large insects. In Russia they prefer beetles and butterflies.

They usually nest in hollow trees. Since in habitats are possible low temperatures, in the cold season, the animals migrate, choosing warmer regions.

The white bat got its name for its original appearance: their wool white color with slight gray patches on the abdomen. But the nose and ears of representatives of this species are bright yellow, and their shape resembles leaves. It seems that the animal has stuck autumn leaves to itself.

This is one of the small representatives of bats: the body size is no more than 4-5 cm, and the weight is only 7 grams. It is so small that sometimes it seems that it is a bird.

This white miracle lives in South and Central America, Honduras, Panama. For life, they choose evergreen forests, where they always find food for themselves - ficuses and fruits.

The original appearance of the animal attracts attention, so the bat at home is becoming more common.

Representatives of this species are rightfully considered the smallest: their weight does not exceed 2 grams, the body length is 3-5 cm. Sometimes they are confused with bumblebees.

They got their name for the original nose, reminiscent of a pig's snout. The usual color is dark brown, sometimes grayish brown. The coat on the abdomen has a lighter shade.

Pig-nosed bats live in southwestern Thailand and on some nearby islands. In other places, they are not common, therefore they are rightfully considered endemic to this area.

A feature of these animals is their joint hunting: they usually gather in small flocks and fly out together in search of small insects.

Small bats are difficult to see with the naked eye, so it is very difficult to observe their life.

The limited habitat has made the population of these animals extremely small. Currently, this species is listed in the Red Book.

These animals live in the territory from southern Mexico to northern Argentina, as well as in the Bahamas and Antilles.

The big harelip is a large bat: its weight sometimes reaches 80 grams, the body size is up to 13.5 cm.

The animals have interesting feature colors: males are bright red, sometimes even fiery red, but females are very faded, grayish brown.

These bats got their second name - the fish-eating bat - because of their eating habits. Animals prefer to live near water bodies. Scientists have found that the harelip eats not only insects, like many bats, but also small fish, small crayfish and frogs.

By the way, unlike many members of their detachment, they can fly out to hunt during the day.

The life of representatives of this species was described in detail by the French scientist Dobanton. It was in honor of him that these animals received their second name - Dobanton's bats.

Relatively small animals (weight up to 15 grams, wingspan - no more than 27 cm, and body length - 5.5 cm) prefer to hunt near water bodies, preferring mosquitoes and other blood-sucking insects for food.

Small-sized bats have a fairly wide habitat: in Russia they can be found in the lower reaches of the Volga, in the Ussuri Territory, on Sakhalin, Kamchatka, in the Primorsky Territory; they also live in other countries: in Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Mongolia, Italy.

Inconspicuous in appearance (usually their fur is dark brown), they are excellent hunters, destroying entire hordes of insects.

Reducing the population of water bats contributes to the spread of livestock diseases transmitted through insect bites.

The most noticeable part of these bats are their huge ears. With a weight of no more than 12 grams and a body size of 5 cm, the ears are sometimes larger than the body. But they cannot boast of the original coloring: their gray-brown fur is very plain.

Earflaps are found in almost all countries of Eurasia, in northern Africa, in China.

For their dwellings, they adapt almost any place: caves, buildings, trees. Most often they fly away to warmer regions for the winter, but always return to their old homes.

Huge ears allow her to hunt even in complete darkness.

It is rightfully considered the smallest representative of the order of bats living in Europe. Its body is up to 4 cm long and weighs 6 g. Representatives of this species have a fairly long tail - up to 3.5 cm.

The color of the animal depends on the region of habitat: in animals living in Asia, it is pale, grayish; European brown.

Bats settle near human habitation, often choosing attics of houses and sheds.

Representatives of this species prefer small insects for food, which helps a lot, exterminating thousands of mosquitoes and midges.

Bat species (bloodsucking)

Watching the representatives of the order of bats, they found out what they eat in wild nature The bat is not only insects and plants. Among these animals there are also those that feed on blood.

A very numerous species spread the opinion about bats as vampires capable of drinking all the blood from an animal or a person. Another name is a big bloodsucker. The enzyme contained in the saliva of these animals can be quite dangerous: it affects blood clotting. Even a minor wound can cause major blood loss. And if several dozen bloodsuckers attack during the night, then death is inevitable.

This is not a very large bat (weight no more than 50 grams, and a wingspan of up to 20 cm) spends the whole day sleeping upside down in its shelter in a large company of brothers, and after dark it flies out to hunt. She chooses her victim among sleeping animals, she especially prefers cattle - they cannot resist. Choosing a place on the body near the vessels, the animal bites and licks the blood, which easily flows out of the wound.

A person can also be attacked by ordinary vampires if they spend the night in places accessible for visiting by these bats.

The habitat of this species is South and Central America.

The representative of this species has average dimensions for bats: body length - up to 11 cm, weight - up to 40 grams, and wingspan - up to 40 cm.

Like an ordinary vampire, the white-winged one lives in South and Central America. Its coat has a reddish-brown hue, somewhat light on the abdomen.

The white-winged vampire attacks birds, it is their blood that is the diet of the animal.

It lives in the same places as its blood-feeding counterparts. But representatives of this species can easily attack both birds and animals.

Unlike other bats, the ruffed vampire does not have a well-developed hearing, so in its flights it relies not so much on the usual echolocation as on vision.

Their grayish-brown coloration and small size allow them to sneak up on their victims unnoticed.

Many researchers have noted that hairy-legged vampires are absolutely not afraid of people: they can fly up very close, practically sit on their hands.

Bats are very often frightened, calling them blood-sucking and dangerous, but of all the variety of species, only three actually drink blood.

Where do bats live?

If we talk about the territories where bats live, then we must list the entire planet. The only exceptions are tundra regions and lands covered with ice. In these natural conditions, the life of bats is impossible. There are no these animals on some remote islands, because they simply could not get there.

The bat is a rare mammal that can exist in almost any place where there is at least some possibility of hiding during the daytime.

In all other corners of the globe you can meet representatives of this detachment. Even in major cities, in the attics of high-rise buildings, bats find shelter.

The bat in nature prefers to settle in caves, where, clinging to ledges, they sleep during the daytime, and at dusk they fly out to hunt. There are caves in which thousands of colonies of bats live. Sometimes the height of the excrement layer in them reaches a meter, which indicates the number of animals and the length of stay in this place.

Where there is no natural shelter, these animals are placed on the trees, hiding between the branches. Sometimes they occupy abandoned hollows, can build themselves shelters from large leaves, gnaw through bamboo trunks, and even settle down between the fruits of plants. The main requirements for their house, where the bat sleeps all day, are safety and the absence of direct sunlight.

These animals are not afraid of people at all, therefore they are quietly placed in the attics of houses, sheds, in livestock rooms.

Sometimes people, not knowing what bats eat in nature, believe that they can be dangerous to humans and domestic animals. Therefore, having found these animals in their attic or in the barn, they try to exterminate them. Most bats eat insects and are therefore completely harmless.

Bats most often live in colonies, which can number several tens of thousands of individuals. Some species huddle together during daytime rest, others prefer to hang upside down in splendid isolation.

A record number of individuals in one colony was counted in Brazil. In one place there was a refuge for 20 million individuals.

Living together does not make these animals flocking, since they do not produce any joint actions: they hunt exclusively alone.

Do not create bats and families. Uniting only at the moment of mating, they immediately forget about each other.

In regions where there are cold seasons, animals can hibernate, which lasts up to 8 months. At this time, bats wrap themselves in their wings, attach themselves upside down in some secluded place and sleep without eating.

Some species are capable of seasonal migrations. With the onset of cold weather, they fly to warmer regions. Sometimes during this period, bats cover distances of up to 1000 kilometers.

If a natural conditions allow the animals to remain active all year round.

How long do bats live?

An interesting question remains: how many years do bats live in nature. Average life expectancy is 5 years. How long bats live depends on the species. Among these animals there are also centenarians, whose age can reach up to 20 years.

The age of the longest-lived record holder among bats is 33 years.

A bat at home usually lives less than the time allotted to it by nature, since it does not have the opportunity to be fully active.

How do bats reproduce?

Reproduction of bats has its own characteristics. Some species that live in warm climatic zones give birth to cubs twice a year. The mating period does not matter to them. The secret way of life of bats does not allow us to accurately imagine how the process of courtship of a male for a female goes.

Males of some species make a variety of sounds before mating. Perhaps with this song they attract the female or tell her about their intentions.

Those animals that live in temperate latitudes bring offspring only once. Mating usually occurs in the fall, before the moment when the animals go into hibernation. But the spermatozoa that have entered the body of the female do not immediately fertilize the egg, but may be in some reservation until the moment of awakening.

After hibernation, pregnancy occurs, the duration of which depends both on the species and on the ambient temperature: at low temperatures, the baby develops longer.

Usually females give birth to one cub, less often two or three. During childbirth, the mouse turns upside down. The calf is born feet first, which is extremely rare in mammals, and immediately enters the tail bag, where it spends a week. After the babies, they hide in shelters and feed with milk. It was this ability of bats that decided the dispute: is a bat a mammal or not, in favor of classifying them as mammals.

In the first week, the female takes her cub with her for night hunting. He clings tightly to his mother during the flight. But after a while, she is forced to leave him in a shelter, because the baby becomes heavy, and it is not possible to fly with him for a long time.

The unique sense of smell allows these animals to find their cubs after night flights. They smell the baby at a distance of several kilometers.

Within a week, and sometimes two, the babies remain completely helpless, and only after a month they begin to hunt on their own near their shelter, without moving far from it.

What does a bat eat and how does it hunt in the wild?

Almost all bats fly out to hunt at dusk or after sunset. The thing is that their vision is developed much worse than their hearing. Most bats feed on flying insects. They hear their movements and pick up prey on the fly or find it among the foliage.

There are animals that feast exclusively on the nectar of flowers and the fruits of fruit trees.

Some large species also eat earthworms, as well as large insects.

Among the bats there is a bat, whose diet includes frogs and small fish, in addition to insects. The animals fly above the surface of the water and determine by the splash where potential prey is located.

But there are only three blood-sucking species, and they live in South and Central America. They fly out to hunt at night, find animals, bite and lick the blood.

Enemies of bats

Bats do not have many enemies in nature, although the animals are very small. This is most likely due to the fact that the nocturnal lifestyle does not give them the opportunity to intersect in nature with many animals that are active during the day. They camouflage their shelters well or live in large colonies, where it can be quite scary for many animals and birds to penetrate.

Those bats that fly out to hunt at dusk (for example, evenings) more often become the prey of daytime birds of prey (hawks, hobby falcons, peregrine falcons), who happily feed on these bats.

But nocturnal birds of prey (owls and owls) quite often attack bats, although it is very difficult to hunt them: advanced echolocation allows you to notice danger and dodge deadly claws and beaks.

Scientists from one of the American institutes noticed an interesting fact: bats living in the caves of one of the mountain ranges of Hungary are attacked by ordinary tits. Brave birds fly into caves, grab a sleeping animal and take it to their nest. Birds rarely fly up to colonies, since the number of bats can be a mortal danger for them.

In those latitudes where many tree snakes, bats hiding in the branches have a hard time. During the day, the animals, as a rule, sleep in shelters and are far from always able to react to an approaching creeping enemy. Yes and fly at sunshine they practically cannot, so they fall prey to those snakes that can eat small bats.

Bats, especially small individuals and species, often fall into the paws of spiders. They cannot see the stretched web in the dark; in this case, echolocation does not always help either. But bats get to hear the insect beating in the web. Sometimes large spiders that feed on small animals do not specifically kill insect prey in order to catch a larger one on it - a bat.

Sometimes bats become food for larger predators - weasels, polecats and martens, which sneak up on sleeping animals and kill them.

But the main enemy is man. Sometimes people destroy entire colonies of bats just because they mistakenly consider them dangerous. Although the animals bring many benefits, destroying insects that carry the infection.

It happens that a person does not have as his goal to kill bats. Some fertilizers or pesticides are harmful to flying animals.

It seems incredible that people also eat bats for food. In many Asian countries, the meat of these animals is considered a delicacy.

What are the benefits of bats

In nature, bats do more good than harm. There are only a few blood-sucking species, so it is impossible to say that it is bats that carry diseases.

But they destroy insects that, flying from one animal to another, are capable of spreading infections. During the season, the animals eat a huge number of mosquitoes, beetles and butterflies, many of which, for example, in tropical countries, really carry deadly diseases.

They protect bat gardens and agricultural land from pests that can destroy crops or damage trees and shrubs.

Flying from plant to plant, they help pollinate them.

Bat droppings are an excellent fertilizer. In some caves where colonies of animals live, up to a meter of excrement can accumulate.

Bat saliva enzymes are used in medicine.

AT recent times people are increasingly adopting as pets not only dogs and cats, but also some exotic animals, among which there is also a bat. At home, these animals take root, but they do not feel as comfortable as in natural conditions. If you still want to keep a bat at home, then try to provide her with a life as close to nature as possible.

First of all, keep in mind that bats are exclusively nocturnal. If you plan to watch her during the day, then you will have to admire the sleeping animal. But at night, your pet will want to fly, which can cause a lot of inconvenience.

pet house

Despite its small size, a bat at home needs a very spacious enclosure where the pet will be able to fly. It is necessary to equip the house with branches, shelters, so that the animal has the opportunity to hide during the daytime rest.

The vital functions of bats directly depend on the ambient temperature, therefore, in the room where the pet lives, it should be approximately 30 degrees, which is quite a lot for a comfortable stay of a person.

A bird cage is not always suitable for keeping bats, since the distance between the twigs is sufficient so that one fine night you can find that the animal flies over your heads and enjoys feasting on insects.

In the natural environment, most bats prefer insects, which they themselves perfectly catch by making night flights. By the way, at home they should be fed in the evening, once a day.

A bat at home does not have the opportunity to feed itself, so the pet's diet should be as close to natural as possible. But this does not mean at all that the owners of unusual pets should catch mosquitoes all evenings and bring them to their pet in a jar. What should you feed a small bat if it lives at home?

The following diet is suitable for bats:

• flour worms;
• insect pupae;
• adult cockroaches;
• raw egg yolk;
• natural honey;
• milk formulas for feeding children up to a month.

Feeding a pet is not so easy: you can add raw yolk, a little honey and vitamin E to the milk mixture. You need to take the animal in your hands and offer it the mixture through a pipette. Keeping the leftover mixture in the refrigerator is not recommended.

Insects suitable for food are usually stored in jars, but for a short time. A tame bat will gladly accept food, but it is not very easy to train it to eat from your hands. It is possible that at first she will refuse food.

Knowing what voracious bats actually eat at home, remember that animals can eat up to half their weight at a time, which, with little activity, can be dangerous to their health. Don't overfeed them.

Interesting facts about bats

• The opinion is firmly entrenched that bats are vampires that fly out to hunt at night and drink the blood of their victims. This judgment greatly exaggerates the idea of ​​an animal, but not unreasonably. There were practically no cases of attacks by bats on people, but in Central and South America there are species that cling to large animals that are not able to resist, and drink their blood.
• Despite what bats eat in the wild and at home, there are no fat animals among them. It's all about good metabolism. They are able to digest all the food they eat in half an hour, although some species are able to catch and eat up to 60 insects in an hour of their hunting.
• Scientists have found that the enzyme contained in the saliva of bats can help people suffering from heart disease. Once in the human blood, this enzyme prevents seizures, and with prolonged use completely cure the heart. Serious research is currently underway in this area.
• Remembering interesting facts about bats, many will note the ability to sleep upside down. None of the representatives of the animal world rests like that. The fact is that this position allows bats to rest and relax the muscles involved in the flight. It also allows you to save energy during takeoff: the animal simply releases the claws with which it was held, falls down and takes off in a maneuver. The lower limbs are completely unsuitable for running and pushing.
• An amazing discovery is made: on the island of Borneo, there is a carnivorous plant that lures bats with special sounds. But he does not eat them at all, but provides his inflorescences as a refuge. In return, bats leave their excrement to the hospitable host, which is very necessary fertilizer for the plant. Such a symbiosis in nature is unique.
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The days when bats were considered vampires and messengers of the devil have not sunk into oblivion. Many are still afraid of winged creatures, firmly believing that a creature the size of a kitten is able to attack and drink all the blood. Reasonable people, who are not afraid of the animal, actively argue whether this miracle of nature is useful or harmful.

There is no doubt that this is a miracle. The only flying mammal on earth, this fact already makes the animal special. Yes, and the evolutionary stage of a bat is much higher than other winged creatures (feathered, insects).

General concepts and appearance

In addition to the name "mouse", the air and ground representatives of the family no longer have anything in common.. They have a completely different origin, structure, lifestyle. Winged beauties come from the order of bats, and they were named mice for some external resemblance to a rodent and the ability to make sounds similar to a mouse squeak.

The main part of the body is occupied by wings. Without them, the animal will be a miniature, short-necked creature with a slightly elongated muzzle, very similar to a land mouse. To some, the appearance of a bat seems cute, someone is driven to shiver by a strangely shaped nose, large ears, a large mouth with pronounced sharp teeth and incomprehensible head growths.

Of all the varieties of the flying family, the fruit dog of the fruit bat genus is perhaps the cutest.. She has large, expressive eyes and a "fox" muzzle. white look flyers are equipped with a growth on the nose in the form of a horn, which makes the olfactory organ look like a petal. This structure is not accidental: the nostrils, set forward, subtly and quickly capture the slightest smells.

The bulldog mouse also has an unusual appearance. The muzzle is provided with a transverse fold of cartilaginous tissue, through the nose from ear to ear. This "roller" connects the ends of the auricles, thereby making them larger and hearing more perfect. The ushan mouse has simply huge ears compared to the body, which makes its echolocation capabilities perfect. By the way, it is this mouse that belongs to the vampire order and really feeds on blood.. But not human and not in frightening volumes, so it’s still not worth making a deadly monster out of it.

External features do not just create the appearance of the animal, they speak of its food preferences. Fruit flyers do not need powerful locating devices, but they do have prominent nostrils. After all, they get food exclusively by smell.

The ability to move through the air in winged animals is fundamentally different from the bird aircraft. Birds have a light cellular bone structure, lung air sacs and a special feather structure with different functions. The family of bats does not have such complex structures.. Their wings are leathery membranous formations that open like a cloak, catch the air flow and this helps the animal to “push off” it and soar.

Such a device for the summer and the structure is special. So, the limbs of the mouse are not just paws, but the backbone for the wing: the shoulder is short, the forearm and four fingers are long so that the span area is larger. From the very base of the neck to the fingertips, except for the thumb, a skin-fibrous "mantle" is stretched. The big one has a function. It is equipped with a tenacious claw and serves to capture.

Bat sense organs

During the day, the animal almost does not see, so at this time he sleeps. In the structure of his eyes, there are no cone receptors responsible for daytime vision.. But there are rod receptors, which makes the animal vigilant at dusk and at night. But many species have skin folds in front of their eyes. This is another fact in favor of the assertion that the mouse moves in space, after all, not thanks to vision, but with the help of echolocation. Fruit bats have day vision, so it is quite possible to meet them during daylight hours.

It is difficult for a person to imagine how one can fly, catch prey and find their way to a nest without eyes, but for mice this is a common thing. The animal emits an ultrasound that humans cannot perceive. It is reflected from objects around and returns to the owner. The radius of the wave is 15 m. Returning, the information passes into the ear and is processed inside the hearing organ. This is the basic concept of echolocation.. which, by the way, was used by people to create devices-scanners of the sea depths. The same way of interacting with environment of the entire world of mammals, only dolphins still have it.

Russian residents of the flying family are small, up to 5 cm in the body and up to 20 cm in the wingspan. Their weight is only 2-5 g. Ushans, pig-noses and white species also do not differ in size. The pig-nosed mouse is generally considered the smallest mammal in the world.

planet. There are giants. They can weigh up to 1 kg, and a wingspan of up to 150 cm with a body of 40 cm. Such giants are found in the bat family of fruit bats, subspecies South American false vampire.

The flight of a bat is not too fast, up to 20 km/h. Although there is a record holder - the Brazilian folded lip. It develops 100 km/h. Mice flying away to spend the winter (there are such species) are able to fly more than 300 km.

It is inconvenient for winged creatures to walk on the ground. Their native element is air. True, the vampire subspecies has a stronger femur and, if necessary, is able to move on the surface, relying on the pads of the paws. But the bats can't do that. Their ground movements are clumsy and awkward.

Diet and sleep patterns of winged animals

Food habits depend on the species, which is why mice are divided into categories:

Insectivores.

Vegetarians (fruit eaters).

Carnivores.

Fish-eating.

Vampires.

Bats sleep upside down. Claws caught on a suitable crossbar, they cover themselves with a cloak of wings and hang in clusters. As soon as the animal senses danger, it spreads its wings and flies away without delay by getting up and taking a vertical position..

Photo

Bat breeding

Before winter sleep, the mating season begins for the animals. It takes several months to bear offspring.. The female feeds the baby with milk for 2 weeks, but surrounds with care and care for longer, up to a month. There are 1-2 cubs in the litter. According to some reports, a bat can live for three decades.

Until now, this animal remains an unusual creature for human understanding, mysterious and interesting. It will be studied for a long time, most likely, there are many surprising things that we do not know about these nocturnal beauties.

Probably every person at least once in his life encountered bats. They can be seen in any city or village, it is only late in the evening or at night to go outside. When we observe these mysterious individuals, the question arises by itself: “Is a bat a bird or an animal?” Let's try to figure this out together.

Animal or bird?

The bat is an animal that belongs to the bats. They are the only mammals that have mastered flight. The most interesting thing is that the name of the species is not true, because these animals have nothing to do with rodents. It would be logical to call them flying monkeys, since flying monkeys are similar to primates. People very often argue: “Which specific species does this bird or animal belong to? Which of these statements is correct?" However, it is unlikely that a person versed in zoology will be able to attribute it to birds just because it has wings. To get started, you need to know full image bat life. Only after that, by providing arguments, can one be convinced of belonging to one or another genus.

Food

Almost all species of bats feed on insects. Because of this, constant questions arise about what species a bat belongs to: is it a bird or an animal. Each individual has its own taste preferences: some prefer butterflies or midges, others prefer spiders or beetles, and others prefer larvae.

Often, bats grab their food during the flight, when a potential victim is floating in the air. As a rule, they also eat on the fly, although there are those bats that prefer to settle down in a more convenient place after the hunt. Their methods of obtaining food are quite interesting and worthy of attention. For example, some bats, with certain movements of the wings, reminiscent of the work of the blades, scoop up insects, while others use their tail membrane as a net with which to catch prey.

Varieties of bats

Like all animals, bats are divided into species. There are quite a lot of bats at the moment. To date, more than 1200 varieties have been discovered. It is unlikely that anyone will want to dispute the fact that the only flying mammals are the most common on the planet. According to statistics, every fifth animal is a bat. They all seem very similar, but they are not. Each species is different and has no analogues. In temperate latitudes, out of the total number of mice, only fifty species live. That is why many do not even suspect that giant individuals exist! For example, the wingspan of bats living in the tropics is more than 170 centimeters. The species of bats are so diverse that research is being carried out at the present time.

Wings

The wings of a bat are formed by thin skin that stretches between the body and fingers. They are designed in such a way that they are able to emit ultrasound, which helps bats navigate in space. With this, the animal can easily detect prey or feel an obstacle in the way. Since ancient times, people believed that they liked to sit on the head of women and drink blood. Actually it is not. The hair of the weaker sex has a peculiar structure, so the wings of a bat, emitting ultrasound, do not receive feedback, respectively, the animal believes that there is an empty space in front of it.

additional information

Bats have very poor vision (black and white) and a sense of smell. Them characteristic feature is perfect hearing. In order to navigate well in the dark, they make a sound and, by its echo, understand whether there is an obstacle in their path and what is the distance to it. Because of this, they do not need good vision.

The basic habits of almost all bat species are similar. All of them lead only a night life, avoid light places and do not make nests. During the day, bats sleep hanging upside down. Most of these mammals are able to hibernate for a very long time due to the ability to slow down the processes of the body. Surprisingly, these animals can change the intensity of the respiratory rate, affect the heart, reduce the speed

Bats fly well, their flight is quite fast and maneuverable, so the question of whether a bat is a bird or an animal is controversial and is often the subject of lengthy discussions.

The science that deals with the study of bats is called chiropterology. In just a few years, scientists have been able to discover dozens of new species of these creatures. It has now been proven that the most common and numerous animal in the world is the bat. But, unfortunately, at the moment they have not yet been fully studied. Their habitat covers almost the entire Earth, except for islands in the ocean and polar regions. They are frequent guests in forests and deserts, plains and mountains, and also live both in a populous city and in those places where no human foot has set foot.