Bats Information
Despite their reputations, Bats are beneficial, balancing the ecosystem. Bats are mammals, feeding on flying insects such as moths, beetles and mosquitoes. In fact, a single bat can eat up to 600 mosquitoes in one hour and may help to reduce the spread of West Nile Virus.
Biology and Behavior
Most bats are active at night or at twilight. Many bats migrate, while other torpor in cold weather but rouse themselves and feed when warm spells permit insect activity. Yet others retreat to caves and hibernate for six months. The social structure of bats varies, with some bats leading a solitary life and others living in caves colonized by more than a million bats. The fission¬ fusion social structure is seen among several species of bats. "Fusion" refers to the grouping of large numbers of bats in one roosting area and "fission" is the breaking apart and mixing of subgroups, with individual bats switching roosts with others and often ending up in different trees and with different roost mates.
Reproduction and Life Span
Mother bats usually have only one offspring per year, and they are viviparous. A baby bat is referred to as a pup. Pups are usually left in the roost when they are not nursing. However, a newborn bat can cling to the fur of the mother and be transported, although they soon grow too large for this. It would be difficult for an adult bat to carry more than one young, but normally only one young is born. Bats often form nursery roosts, with many females giving birth in the same area, be it a cave, a tree hole, or a cavity in a building. Mother bats are able to find their young in huge colonies of millions of other pups. Pups have even been seen to feed on other mothers' milk if their mother is dry. Only the mother cares for the young, and there is no continuous partnership with male bats. The ability to fly is congenital, but after birth the wings are too small to fly. Young micro bats become independent at the age of 6 to 8 weeks, mega bats not until they are four months old. At the age of two years, bats are sexually mature. A single bat can live over 20 years, but the bat population growth is limited by the slow birth rate.
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