© tent making bat courtesy of Bat Conservation International
Bats
The only mammal that has wings
and can can fly,
bats are found all over the world,
especially in the tropics. Almost
all bats are nocturnal and live in colonies that can
include millions of bats!
The Mexican Free-Tailed bat colony in Carlsbad
Caverns, New Mexico, has up to a million that swarm at dusk and eat insects. Each bat can
eat many stomach fulls. There are at least 5 other bat species there.
r Living in trees, caves,
and buildings, bats sleep during the day and upside down.They all use echolocation to find their prey and help them
navigate.
Many people are
afraid of bats because they believe
they drink human blood. The vampire bat is the only species that drinks mammals' blood and
humans' very rarely.
The vampire bat lives in South America.