WHERE IN THE WORLD DO BATS LIVE?

Bats can be found in almost every part of the worldexcept where it is very, very hot or in the really coldareas and on some remote islands. They live on allcontinents, except Antarctica. More species can be found where the climate is warm. The warm spots arenear the equator and are called “tropics” and “rainforests”.

On islands that are far from continents,there are only a few species of bats. That’sbecause it’s too far for most bats to fly agreat distance to reach those islands.

In the U.S., the greatest

number of bat species live in the S.W. partof the country. This area has a variety of

places where bats can live and there is a lot of foodavailable during most of the year. For example, Texashas 32 different kinds of bats, Maine has 8, Arizona has28 and Michigan has only 10.

WHAT KIND OF HOMES DO THEY HAVE ?

Many bats find trees to be the perfect place to roost and spendtheir time taking care of their babies. Some bats actually liveunder big leaves and by using camouflage they can hide fromharm and danger. There are other bats that roost under thebark of trees, while still others just hang from the branches.

Perhaps the place where most people think bats live is incaves. A lot of bats do find these big underground caverns a perfectplace in which to raise babies and sleep during the day.

Bracken Cave in Texas has close to 20 million Mexican Free Tailbats living there.

This is a picture of the emergence of bats fromBracken Cave in Texas.

At times bats may use houses or buildings as a roostingsite. Even though these places are not as good as their naturalhabitats, these man-made structures do offer them protectionand are much like their preferred roosts.

Wherever there is a bridge, there might also be bats livingunder it. Even the noise of a busy road overhead doesn’t seemto scare them. As the sun sets, they begin their night flightout to look for food.

Some bats may find old mines that are no longer being used and set up their colony there.People often like to explore these mines and whenthey do, they disturb the bats. Putting a heavy grate at the mine opening protects the bats. Not all mines are good for bats. They must be like thecaves in which bats also live.

There is another type of home in which bats willlive, but often animals or insects will get in itfirst before the bats can. These are bat housesthat people build hoping the bats will move in.

WHAT DOES A BAT LOOK LIKE ?

EARS: Bats have very good hearing. They use it for finding food andlocating their babies. For insect and fish eaters, the big ears helpwith echolocation Usually, echoes are received by funnel-shaped ears that face forward.

NOSE:

The sense of smell is well developed in most bats. It is used tofind and identify certain foods and to recognize roost mates andyoung. Fruit eating bats can find their food by the smell ofripening fruit. Nectar seeking bats gather pollen on their snout,and by going from flower to flower help create new plants.

This is the Mexican long-tongued bat. It gets pollenon its face when it dips intothe nectar. It then spreads thepollen to other flowers.

EYES:

Bats are not blind ! For example, flying fox bats have very good eyesight and they use their eyes along with theirexcellent sense of smell to help find food in the dark.

FEET:

With their strong claws, bats are able to hang upside down in their roosts. Fishing bats also use their claws to scoop up thefish they will eat.

HANDS AND WINGS:

Bats fly by using their hands and wings. While the wings areflapping, bats can go up or down by moving the membrane betweenthe body and fifth finger. This is called “lift”.

Bats move forward (called “thrust”) by changing the shape of the membrane between the second and fifth fingers.

FUR ON THEIR BODY:

You can tell that a bat is a mammal because it has fur orhair on its body. The fur protects the bat because different colorsand designs can serve as camouflage and they can hide fromdanger. The fur is kept clean by regular licking, somewhat likewhat a cat does. In the winter , the fur helps to keep the batwarm.

IF THEY CAN FLY, WHY AREN’T THEY BIRDS?

Bats are mammals. They have hair or fur. A baby bat isborn alive. The babies nurse from their mother. Bats havearms, hands and feet. They are warm blooded.

Birds are…well…birds ! They are hatched from eggs. Birdshave feathers, not fur or hair. Babies are fed from mom’smouth. They have wings, but no hands and fingers.

So, are birds and bats different? Yes they are. And, a bat is theonly mammal that can truly fly…..