There are about 1000 varieties of bats throughout the world. The greatest number are in Central and South America, but many are in North America, Europe and other areas as well. Some have a wing-span of more than five feet, and a few weigh more than a pound, but most are much smaller.
They are the only animals that can truly fly. (There are some squirrels and lemurs that appear to fly but are actually just gliding from one tree to another.) Although bats are not birds, they have been provided with wings made of tough skin stretched over delicate “finger” bones and muscles. The most amazing thing about them is the different head shapes, as some of the following names indicate.
Bats “see” in the dark by giving out high-pitched squeaks through their mouths and noses. The sounds make waves in the air that bounce back immediately to the bat when they reach an object. Then the bat’s large odd-looking ears send the sounds to the brain, where the bat can identify and avoid whatever is in its way, or make a meal of it if it is an insect. In this way they not only avoid bumping into things, but can also identify a moth, a singing frog, or other things they catch for food.
Summing it up, bats fly with their “fingers” and “see” with their ears, enabling them to find their way through the most difficult places, even in the darkest night. Another odd thing about them is that they do not actually have nests, but hang upside down, holding on to the edge of a rock wall, a timber or other support. Even newborn babies do this without being taught.
They are found everywhere, except in polar regions and on mountain tops. A favorite spot to see them is the Carlsbad Caverns of New Mexico where visitors often have an opportunity to see thousands of them flying out of the caves as darkness takes over. A similar spot is at the Blowing Wind cave of Alabama, where about 500,000 gray bats make their home.
Following is a brief description of some of these interesting flying animals: One named Kitti’s hog-nosed bat, a native of Thailand, is the world’s smallest, weighing less than an ounce. The largest is the flying fox, also in Thailand. Some of these weigh more than two pounds and have wingspans up to five feet across.
The greater horseshoe bat has a very red face, legs and claws, along with almost-transparent huge wings which in some varieties are white, others are light green and sometimes light tan.
The fishing bat, especially fond of minnows, locates its prey with sonar and snares it with oversized claws. The very faint noise of ripples on the water made by the minnow swimming near the surface tells the bat where to find it.
(to be continued)
ML-09/22/1991