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Bat


I found this Bat hanging upside down from a coconut palm near my home.

There are over 1,100 species of bats, and they live on every continent except Antarctica. Only 3 species of bats suck blood. Most (70%) eat insects. The other 30% of bats eat fruit, pollen, or nectar, or are carnivores.

While reading about Bats, I came across these very interesting birth control strategies followed by female bats:

Female bats use a variety of strategies to control the timing of pregnancy and the birth of young, to make delivery coincide with maximum food availability and other ecological factors. Females of some species have delayed fertilization, in which sperm are stored in the reproductive tract for several months after mating. In many such cases, mating occurs in the fall, and fertilization does not occur until the following spring. Other species exhibit delayed implantation, in which the egg is fertilized after mating, but remains free in the reproductive tract until external conditions become favorable for giving birth and caring for the offspring.

In yet another strategy, fertilization and implantation both occur, but development of the fetus is delayed until favorable conditions prevail, during the delayed development the mother still gives the fertilized egg nutrients, and oxygenated blood to keep it alive. However this process can go for a long period of time, because of the advanced gas exchange system. All of these adaptations result in the pup being born during a time of high local production of fruit or insects.


44 comments:

  1. Very much like our kangaroos, they can keep a foetus from developing for two years.

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  2. Fascinating information!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

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  3. An excellent photo. I've yet to have the chance to photograph a bat.

    Visiting your page via 'NF Inspiring/Catching The Light'

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  4. OMG! That is scary!
    Excellent clarity.

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  5. Cool capture and interesting information

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  6. Interesting blog....not a fan of bats but I learned something today♫ My Catching the Light: http://lauriekazmierczak.com/ahh-summer/

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  7. Wow, what a fabulous shot!

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  8. Bats are not my favorites. I remember, a million years ago, going to Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico, one summer to watch the mass exodus of bats at sunset. It gave me the heebie jeebies to know all of those critters were flying around out there.

    You got a great shot. I don't want to walk near that tree.

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  9. A nice bat :)
    Great shot.
    Mormor

    http://www.starbear.no/mormor/2013/07/02/a-fange-lyset-er-ideen/

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  10. good u managed to take the best shot :)

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  11. Adorable! I didn't know that about bats.

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  12. Ewww!! There is a bat walk in Central Park this month and I cant decide whether to go and now that I see this photo, I am going to pass.
    Happy WW!
    http://www.nycsinglemom.com/2013/07/02/sofia-the-first/

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  13. Ohh... whao..such a close up of a bat. I haven't really seen one up and close.. I think I will sure freak out if that happens.

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  14. That's a brilliant capture quite scary when first looked at heheh!

    Have a battastic week ;-)

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  15. Might be strange, but the bat is so cute!

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  16. No way! How awesome is that close-up! Well done!

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  17. Very cool, and it's such an unusual color, almost purple! :) Have a great WW!

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  18. Wow, what a shot! Thanks for the interesting facts. Visiting form Our World.

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  19. fantastic shot..but a bit..hmmm...creepy!

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  20. so cute! stop by and link up http://peekababyny.com/newyork/post-2496/

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  21. Oh my, oh my... Cute but odd to find it near by.

    We appreciate you stopping by and linking up via our hop: http://www.craftyspices.com/hops/wwhop
    Happy Day!

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  22. After all the rain we have been having in the mid-western part of the U.S.A., we haven't been noticing bats flying around eating mosquitos. Hope they arrive soon.

    Adorable bat photo!
    JM Illinois
    U.S.A.

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  23. An excellent close-up shot! There are only smaller, insect-eating ones in our parts. Also very cute looking, though.

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  24. Cool pic, but not something I'd want to come across on one of my walks.

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  25. Not a big fan of bats -- but I do appreciate their insect control tendencies! Great shot.

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  26. Beautiful capture and interesting information...

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  27. fabulous capture....I can see every detail of this fascinating mammal....

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  28. On my goodness.... FANTASTIC to capture a photo of this bat.... Wonderful.... Michelle from Nature Notes

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  29. Amazing capture! Glad you shared it on Orange You Glad.

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  30. Great post and photo, I am not a fan of bats either :). Thanks for joining our party!
    BiTi
    http://www.pret-a-vivre.com/2013/07/happy-fourth-of-july-lets-partyyyyy.html

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  31. Very clever, those little bats! Great photo and thanks for the info, too.

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  32. Wow, stunning shot!

    http://www.1sthappyfamily.com/2013/07/only-few.html

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  33. OMG you really captured a great shot of this bat. They are sort of cute & creepy all at the same time.

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  34. What a great capture of this amazing little creature!

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  35. WOW! I have never seen a bat up so close!

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  36. Pretty awesome. Tho not really a bird, it's a mammal, I am totally fascinated with bats. During a biology class long ago, we were able to hold one...their wings are like soft, thin, kid-glove, leather!!

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  37. Great closeup of the bat. They are important to have around, they control the skeeters.

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  38. Not the most pleasant critter to look at but interesting facts about birth control shared.

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  39. grear! trust you to find some thing like this in a backyard!

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