4. 5. North American Eastern Red Bat range 6. Food
The eastern red bat mostly eatsmoths, beetles
, worms,leaf hoppers,
7. Breeding
During the day hold on to their mothers with one foot and on to
a perch with the other. Mothers leave their young alone at night
when they go out to feed, but if necessary, they will move them to
new locations. Pups begin flying at three to four weeks and are
weaned only a few weeks later. In the summertime red bats are among
the earliest evening fliers, typically feeding around forest edges,
in clearings, or around street-lights where they consume
predominantly moths.
8. Predators
Natural enemies of the red bat are blue jays, hawks, owls and
other predators that inhabit and forage in trees. Owls are one of
the main predators of eastern red bats.
9. Range
Red bats are migratory, spending summers throughout Kansas and
wintering to the east and south, and remain active all winter. They
arrive in Kansas as early as mid-March (April in northern Kansas),
and are common in deciduous forests throughout the eastern half of
the state, but less so in the western half, where they live in
riparian forests along water courses.
10. Hibernation and Migration
Bats migrate into caves during the winter
Becausethere food source is low. All insects have dieddue to
thecold. Theeastern red bat
Migrates into caves like lots of other species.
11. Extras~
They are known to survive body temperatures as low as 23
degrees F. Their long, silky fur provides extra protection from
severe cold, and they also use their heavily furred tail membrane
like a blanket, wrapping themselves up almost completely. While in
hibernation, red bats respond to subfreezing temperatures by
raising their metabolic rate to maintain a body temperature above
their critical lower survival limit.