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Bats, also known as flying foxes are mammals which can fly. They belong to the Chiroptera order and form the second largest group of mammals. Around 1100 bats have been reported worldwide and since they prefer warm climate, they do not occur in the Polar Regions. Out of the 1100 bats, 70% feed on insects and similar creatures (insectivores) while the rest feed on fruits (frugivores). They play a major and important role in the ecosystem by helping to keep the insect population under control, pollinate flowers and distribute seeds of various plants.
Bats fall under two main categories – Megabats (megachiroptera) and Microbats (microchiroptera). Megabats are usually large sized (though there a few of them that are smaller than the microbats) with well-developed eyes and small ears. Their eye sight is so good that they do not depend on echolocation for navigation and finding food. They feed on fruits, nectar and pollen. Microbats on the other hand are relatively smaller with small eyes and large ears. They have poor eyesight and hence have to use echolocation. These types of bats mainly feed on insects and small creatures and a few of them (Vampire Bats) love to drink blood.
Megabats belong to the Pteropodidae family which is further divided into 7 subfamilies. Afew of the megabats are described below.
- Eastern Tubenosed Bat (Nyctimene robinsoni) - Also known as or Queensland Tubenosed Bat, the Eastern Tubenosed Bat belongs to the subfamily Nyctimeninae and genus Nyctimene (Tube-nosed fruit bats). It is a dark brown bat with gray colored head and yellow spots scattered here and there. Unlike most other species of this family, this bat has raised tubular nostrils.
- Pygmy Fruit Bat (Aethalops alecto) – Also known as the Grey Fruit Bat, this bat is a species of Old World fruit bat. It belongs to the subfamily Cynopterinae and genus Aethalops (pygmy fruit bats).This bat is highly restricted to montane forest above 1000 m from Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Java. It had been reported at Mount Kinabalu in Borneo and Crocker Range in Sabah; Gunung Mulu and Bareo in Sarawak.
- Spotted-winged Fruit Bat (Balionycteris maculate) – This bat, belonging to the subfamily Cynopterinae and genus Balionycteris is the smallest fruit bat in the whole world. It is found in southern Thailand, Malaysia, and on the island of Borneo, this bat is the only type within this genus. The name Spotted-winged Fruit Bat comes from its dark wings with a pale spot at each joint. It occupies forest areas where they can be found roosting in small groups in caves and trees.
- Lesser Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus brachyotis) - A small bat that belongs to the subfamily Cynopterinae and genus Cynopterus (dog-faced fruit bats or short-nosed fruit bats). Itis brown to yellowish brown with a dark orange collar in males and yellowish collar in females. It has a fox-like face with large black eyes. They roost in small groups in trees, caves and under leaves. This is a widely distributed species. Its range includes Sri Lanka, southwest India, northeast India, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, southern China, southern Burma, Indochina, Thailand, the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Bali, Sulawesi, the Philippines and also on the Lesser Sunda Islands. It plays a vital role in plant pollination. Various plants such as avocadoes, dates, bananas, mangoes, and peaches depend on them for seed distribution. Since they feed on fruits, they are considered as crop pests.
- Greater Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus sphinx) – This bat, belonging to the subfamily Cynopterinae and genus Cynopterus (dog-faced fruit bats or short-nosed fruit bats) is found in South and Southeast Asia. It is also known as the Short-nosed Indian Fruit Bat. It is brown to grey-brown on the upper side and paler below and has very soft and silky fur. Its range includes Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam. These bats make nests high up in palm trees. They chew the palm fronds to make tents. When palms are not available, they construct tents by closely weaving together the leaves and twigs of creeping vines that grow over buildings. Short-nosed fruit bats are carriers of the deadly disease, Japanese encephalitis in humans. Even though they play important roles in pollination and seed dispersal in many plants, they are considered to be pests on fruit crops.
- Dayak fruit bat or Dyak fruit bat (Dyacopterus spadiceus) - This bat, belonging to the subfamily Cynopterinae and genus Dyacopterus (Dayak fruit bats) is a very rare fruit bat found only on the Sunda Shelf of southeast Asia, specifically the Malay Peninsula south of the Isthmus of Kra, and the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. It is gray-brown on the upper side and silver-gray on the lower side. It has short tail and short fur. It weighs less than 150 grams and has the smallest skull size. This bat is an inevitable element in the ecosystem as it plays a vital role in seed dispersal in the rainforest. It is the only known bat that shows the phenomenon of natural paternal lactation.
- Salim Ali's fruit bat (Latidens salimalii) – A rare megabat that belongs to the subfamily Cynopterinae and genus Latidens. It is the only type belonging to this genus. It is a middle-sized bat with no external tail. Its wing is light brown and the head is covered by blackish brown fur. The lower side is light grey-brown with the hairless brown wing membrane. It was first recorded at an altitude of 750 meters in the High Wavy Mountains of the Annamalai Western Ghats, Theni district, Tamilnadu, South India. This bat is considered to be a critically endangered species.
- Dusky Fruit Bat (Penthetor lucasi) - This bat, belonging to the subfamily Cynopterinae and genus Penthetorthe only type within this genus. The upper side is dark grey-brown and lower side is pale buff-grey. It roosts in large groups in rock shelters or caves, sometimes in darkness. These bats attack fruit plantation for their food and hence they are considered to be crop pests. They are useful as a seed dispersing agent. Range of this bat includes South-East Asia - Peninsular Malaysia and extreme South Thailand. Also Borneo, Sumatra and Riau archipelago.
- Talaud Flying Fox (Acerodon humilis) – This bat belongs to the subfamily Pteropodinae and genus Acerodon. It is found only in the islands of Salebabu and Karekaleng in the Talaud archipelago of Indonesia. It occurs in habitats like subtropical or tropical swamps. This bat is listed as an endangered species. The decline in its population is due to hunting and loss of habitat from logging.
- Giant golden-crowned flying fox (Acerodon jubatus) - Also known as the Golden-capped fruit bat, this bat belongs to the subfamily Pteropodinae and genus Acerodon. It is the largest known bat in the whole world and is found only in Philippines. These bats are considered vulnerable to extinction due to hunting and deforestation. This bat gets its common name from the golden fur around its head. Its natural habitat is the rainforests of the Philippines. It helps in the pollination and dispersal of seeds of many fruit trees in Philippines. An interesting characteristic of this bat is that it uses water for grooming.
- Panay Giant Fruit Bat (Acerodon lucifer) - This is a fruit bat belonging to the subfamily Pteropodinae and genus Acerodon. It is found in the Philippines. This species was declared extinct in 1996. The reasons that led to the extinction of these bats include deforestation and/or excessive hunting of the species.
- Straw coloured fruit bat (Eidolon helvum) – An African fruit bat that is one of the most widely distributed species. It derives its name from the yellowish or straw color of their exterior. It belongs to the subfamily Pteropodinae and genus Eidolon (straw-coloured fruit bats). Range of this bat extends from southwestern Arabian Peninsula, forest and savanna zones of Africa (south of the Sahara) and to the offshore island of Madagascar. Males are bright orange whereas the females are usually silky yellowish. It has very big eyes, ears and cheeks. Its wings are long, black and pointed at the tip. These bats live in large communities or groups of over 100,000. They leave their roost in groups at night time in search of food. They detect their food by smell and sight. They are useful creatures that help in pollination and seed dispersal.
- Black flying fox (Pteropus alecto)– One of the largest bats belonging to the subfamily Pteropodinae and genus Pteropus. This bat has short black hair with a reddish-brown mantel and has an average weight of 710 grams and a wing-span of more than one meter. They are residents of Australia, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. These bats roost in large groups in mangroves, patches of rainforest, paperbark swamps, and bamboo forests, and sometimes in caves or underneath overhangs. They are single brooded. The mother carries her young one for the first month and after that she flies alone in search of food at night. Black flying-foxes feed on pollen and nectar from native eucalyptus, paperbark, Lilypillies and turpentine trees.
- Spectacled Flying Fox (Pteropus conspicillatus) - A large black flying fox also known as the Spectacled Fruit Bat belonging to the subfamily Pteropodinae and genus Pteropus. It has straw-colored fur surrounding its eyes. The mantle is dull yellow and extends across the back, neck, and shoulders. Some species have pale yellow fur on the face and top of the head. These bats live in forests and rainforests are their favored habitat. They build colonies in rain forests, mangroves, paperbark, and eucalypt forests. The Spectacled Flying-fox feeds on rainforest fruits, riparian zone flowers, and flowers from Myrtaceae (primarily Eucalyptus and Syzygium species) and fruits from the Moraceae (figs) and Myrtaceae (primarily Syzygium). Females brood once a year during October to December. Young ones are nursed for over five months and after which they are assembled in nursery trees in the colony.
The second category of types of bats, the Microbats or echolocating bats are usually referred to by their scientific name. As mentioned before, these bats rely on echolocation to find food and for navigation. A few of the microbats are described below.
- Seychelles sheath-tailed bat (Coleura seychellensis)– belongs to the family Emballonuridae and genus genus Coleura. It is found in the central granitic islands of the Seychelles Islands north of Madagascar. It is one of the most endangered species due to habitat loss and effects of introduced plant species. This bat weighs about 10 - 11 g. It roosts in caves and houses, in crevices and cracks. It feeds on a variety of insects and similar creatures.
- Northern Ghost Bat (Diclidurus albus) – Also known as the Jumby Bat, this bat comes from South America, Trinidad, and Central America. It belongs to the family Emballonuridae and genus genus Diclidurus. It is a rather rare and white bat with a strange sac at the base of its tail. It feeds on insects and roosts in caves, deep rock crevices, and old mines.
- Kitti's Hog-nosed Bat (Craseonycteris thonglongyai)– belongs to the family Craseonycteridae and genus Craseonycteris. Also known as the bumblebee bat, this is the smallest species / type of bat and comes from western Thailand and southeast Burma. Upperside has a reddish-brown or grey coat and underside is paler. It has a prominent pig-like snout. Its ears are large whereas its eyes are small and mostly covered by fur. Wings are large and black with long tips. These bats roost in the caves of limestone hills and feed on insects.
- Lesser Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus hipposideros) – This is a European bat that is one of the smallest bats in the world. It has a wingspan of about 192-254 mm and weighs only 5 to 9 grams. The common name is derived from its prominent horse-shoe shaped nose. This bat has very small eyes and strong feet that help in holding on to rocks and branches of trees. It lives in groups and hunts food by relying on echolocation (frequency ranges from between 93-111 kHz). Their natural diet includes small insects. The Lesser Horseshoe bat is single brooded. It gives birth to only one pup in a year. These bats hibernate during winter inside caves, cellars, mines and old buildings. This species is vulnerable to extinction due to destruction of its habitat, over use of insecticides etc.
- Ghost Bat (Macroderma gigas) -Also known as the False Vampire Bat, this species belongs to the family Megadermatidae and genus Macroderma. It is found only in Australia. Its wings have a very thin membrane that gives it a ghostly appearance at night and hence the common name Ghost Bat. Upperside is covered with grey fur and the lower side has pale grey- white fur. Its wings are long and slender and it lacks a tail. It has large ears and very sharp teeth. Apart from insects, their natural diet consists of small creatures like frogs, lizards and sometimes even other bats. It uses both eyesight as well as echolocation for hunting. It can be found roosting in caves, tunnels and mines in small groups. This species is also considered to be vulnerable to extinction due to destruction of its habitat.
- Vampire bats – These are bats that feed on blood. There are 3 species, all native to Americas that belong to this type. They are the Common Vampire Bat (Desmodus rotundus), the Hairy-legged Vampire Bat (Diphylla ecaudata), and the White-winged Vampire Bat (Diaemus youngi). They have small ears and short tail membrane. Their teeth are very sharp which helps to bite and cut into the prey. The saliva of the vampire bats contain a substance called Draculin which helps to prevent clotting of the prey’s blood and prolong bleeding. These bats feed on the blood by licking at the bleeding site. They do not suck blood. This bat has an interesting behavior of adopting a orphaned young bats, may be because of the strong bond that it shares with other members of the group. It is also interesting to note that they share their food with other hungry bats. Vampire bats prefer to live in colonies in completely dark places, such as caves, old wells, hollow trees, and buildings.
Out of the 1100 kinds / types of bats, a large number of them are vulnerable to extinction due to deforestation, habitat loss, and excessive use of insecticides. Providing bats with bat houses can help to control the population decline by arranging areas for them to roost, hibernate and raise their young pups.
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