"Short-tailed Fruit Bat" by Andy Morffew is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Bats are flying mammals belonging to the order Chiroptera
The name 'bat' is designated to the group of more than 1400 species making up the order Chiroptera. Meaning 'hand-wing,' this order name refers to the evolution of wings in bats through the elongation of bones commonly forming the fingers in other mammals. These elongated fingers bones and the thin, flexible membrane stretched over them enable bats to engage in true flight, a capability not seen in any other mammals. Bats have remained the only mammals capable of true flight since their emergence as a group fifty million years ago. Notably, bats make up about one-fifth of global mammals species.
"MDC biologist inspects bat wing" by USFWS Headquarters is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Bats have diverse forms and habits
"Seychelles Fruit Bat" by jurvetson is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Bats range in size from as small as the Kitti’s Hog-nosed Bat (also known as the Bumblebee Bat) at 29-33 mm (head and body length) to as large the Giant Golden-crowned Flying Fox with a wing-span of up to six feet. They may inhabit caves, forests, or even old mines and a variety of other human structures, and they are found widely dispersed across all continents with the exception of Antarctica. In dealing with winter, species may either hibernate or migrate.
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Bats are primarily recognized as being insectivores, frugivores (consuming only fruit seeds and pollen), or blood-drinkers (only 3 species of bats fit into this category), but some have been found to eat amphibians, fish, birds, or even other bats.
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Despite all of this diversity, most bats tend to be slow reproducers, with most species producing an average of one pup per year.
Bats are critical pollinators, pest managers, and seed-dispersers
Both frugivorous and insectivorous bats serve as important pollinators for many plants. It is estimated that 528 species of angiosperms are bat-pollinated, and these plants are typically uniquely adapted to be pollinated solely by bats due to the benefits of the relative large size and range of bats which facilitate the transfer of greater amounts of pollen over farther distances. Specifically in fragmented habitats, bats as opposed to other pollinator types are beneficial because they disperse pollen between individuals of fragmented or low-density species.
The diet preferences, long-distance flights, and tendency to defecate during flight seen in fruit bats also make them important seed-dispersers, especially in fragmented or otherwise disturbed forests.
"Bat in the banana tree" by Derek Keats is licensed under CC BY 2.0
In addition, insectivorous bats are key pest consumers. Studies have shown that a single bat can eat its body weight (or more) of insects in a single night of feeding, and estimates suggest that the value of this service to farmers in the U.S. could be worth $23 billion annually in the form of reduced pesticide use and decreased crop damage.
"Pallid bat eating a grasshopper" by blmcalifornia is marked with CC PDM 1.0
Page References
Bat Conservation International. (2021, February 17). Bats 101. https://www.batcon.org/about-bats/bats-101/CT
Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. (2016). Bats. CT.Gov - Connecticut’s Official State Website. https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Wildlife/Fact-Sheets/Bats
Defenders of Wildlife. (2021, March 2). Bats. https://defenders.org/wildlife/bats
Fleming, T. H., Geiselman, C., & Kress, W. J. (2009). The evolution of bat pollination: a phylogenetic perspective. Annals of Botany, 104(6), 1017–1043. https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcp197
Hagen, E. (2009, November 4). Bat Food. Ask a Biologist. https://askabiologist.asu.edu/batfood#:%7E:text=Most%20bats%20eat%20insects%20and,eat%20a%20lot%20of%20insects.
The Zoological Society of London. (2019, October 25). Bumblebee bat. EDGE of Existence. http://www.edgeofexistence.org/species/bumblebee-bat/
Bat Conservation Trust. (2021). Bats of the world - Types of bats. Bat Conservation Trust. https://www.bats.org.uk/about-bats/what-are-bats/bats-of-the-world#:%7E:text=Bats%20are%20found%20almost%20everywhere,a%20few%20isolated%20Oceanic%20islands.
U.S. Department of the Interior. (2019, October 28). 13 Awesome Facts About Bats. https://www.doi.gov/blog/13-facts-about-bats
U.S. Forest Service. (2021). Bat Pollination. https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/pollinators/animals/bats.shtml