Because bats can fly they are placed in their own order- Chiroptera. Chiroptera is a Greek word, in English it means hand-wing. The wing of a bat is almost the same as your hand, but a bat�s fingers are elongated and they have skin that attaches to the fingers to allow them to fly. There are over 900 different kinds of bats in the world, most are found in the tropics.A bat fits into one of two categories, it is either a Megachiroptera (Mega-Bat), or a Microchiroptera (Micro-Bat). Mega-Bats are large bats found in tropical rainforests (places like Australia and Africa). These bats are also called flying foxes because they look like foxes. They either eat fruit or drink nectar from flowers, and sometimes look for food during the day instead of at night. Micro-Bats are small bats found all over the world, including here in the U.S. They eat mostly insects, although some eat fruit. These bats use echolocation, or radar, to find their food. The biggest bat in the world is, of course, a Mega Bat. Its common name is the gigantic flying fox, found in Asia. It weighs over 2 pounds and has a wingspan of about 6 feet (that�s wider than we are tall!). This bat eats only fruit, and eats lots! The smallest bat is the hog-nosed bat (or the bumblebee bat). It is found in Thailand and weighs about 2 grams (that�s how much a dime weighs). It has a 6 inch wingspan. Most bats in the United states eat insects. As a matter of fact, one little brown bat can eat more than 600 mosquitoes in a single hour. Bats eat half their body weight a night (that would be like you or me eating 30 pizzas!). In other parts of the world bats eat strange things indeed. Some bats only eat fish, some bats eat other bats, some bats eat spiders. Bats are not blind. Some bats actually have good eyesight. Bats do not make nests in your hair. Bats roost, they do not build nests. Bats will not attack people, they are very small and gentle animals. Remember, we are very large to a bat and they are afraid of us. All bats do not have rabies. However, like any other mammal bats can get rabies. Always make sure not to pick up or try to play with any wild animal. They are meant to be wild and left alone.
Ngwenya bat housesChiroptera, their scientific name, means "winged hand." Their wings are not constructed like a birds but instead have leathery skin stretched across the bones that move like hands and fingers. And just like other mammals, bats have teeth, hair and give birth to live young. When a female bat is ready to give birth, she switches positions in order to hang with her head upright. As the baby is born, she catches it with her tail. Baby bats, called pups, are nursed and taken care of by their mothers for an extended period of time. Moms hold their babies close to them, wrapping their wings around the babies for warmth and protection. At night a very young pup will cling to his mother's fur as she finds food for them. When he gets too heavy, she will bring back food for him until he begins hunting with her at about 4 weeks of age. Bats in cold climates may migrate in the spring and fall or they may seek shelter in caves and hibernate. In the fall, bats gain body weight, putting a layer of fat. If a hibernating bat is awakened before the warm spring, there is a great possibility that it will die from starvation. Why? Because the bat's metabolism speeds up when it awakens, using up its stored food supply too quickly. 75% of bats eat insects and other invertebrates. Bats eat an unbelievable number of mosquitoes and other insects each evening - one bat can eat between 1,000 and 3,000 insects each night! In the tropics, there are a few bats that will have a meal of a frog, fish, or small bird. Other bats drink nectar, eat pollen, or feast on fruit. In the hot humid areas of Central and South America, the infamous vampire bat lives who feeds on the blood of mammals and birds. But remember, this is only one species. Practically all bats are shy and harmless. In fact, one scientist has likened their behavior to "winged hamsters." While birds perch, bats hang. While at rest, birds fold back their wings; bat wrap their wings around their bodies.
