Hobbies And Interests
Appearance
Bats have four elongated fingers and a relatively small thumb on each hand. A bat's wings consist of double-thick skin membranes that connect to the bat's fingers and body. The flying fox has the largest wingspan (up to 6 feet), while the Kitti's hognosed bat has the smallest wingspan (less than 6 inches.) A bat's legs have backward-flexing knees that help the animal move quickly through narrow spaces. The bodies of bats are covered in dense fur, and most bats have either black or brown fur. Megabats are distinguished by their long snouts and large eyes, while microbats typically have short snouts and small eyes.
Distribution
Since bats can fly, they have the ability to travel to all around the world. They live in most terrestrial habitats, though they are not found in desert regions or in extremely cold regions of the northern or southern hemisphere. Many bats live in tropical forests close to the equator. About 45 species are found in North America compared to 120 species found in the northern part of South America. Ranges differ among bats. For instance, the Daubenton's bat ranges from Europe to Japan, while the Rodrigues fruit bat resides only on the island of Rodrigues in the Indian Ocean.
Diet
Newborn bats feed on their mother's milk until they're 6 months old. Megabats sustain themselves with a diet of fruit, pollen or nectar and rely heavily on their sense of smell to locate food. Fruit-eating bats often spit out the seeds of their fruit, and the seeds end up germinating in the ground and producing new trees. Microbats mostly eat insects such as beetles, flies and mosquitoes. Three small species of vampire bats in Central and South America feed on the fresh blood of birds and mammals. Some microbat species, such as the fisherman bat, eat fish.
Roosting
Roosting refers to the resting behavior of bats when they are not in flight. Bats typically roost in large groups during the daytime in caves and crevices of trees. They hang upside down, supported by their back legs. Bats also roost in the roof spaces of buildings, cellars, tunnels, tombs and churches. Cold winter months in temperate climates force bats to sustain themselves by hibernating in tree crevices or underground sites. Bats typically have more than one roosting site of various temperatures that they move to during different times of the year.