Nyctalus

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Noctule Bats
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Chiroptera Family: Vespertilionidae Genus: Nyctalus Bowdich, 1825

The bat genus Nyctalus (Noctule bats) are members of the family Vespertilionidae (Vesper bats) or sometimes Evening bats. They are distributed in the temperate and subtropical areas of Europe, Asia and North Africa.

[edit] Common noctule bat

With a length of 8 cm and a wing span of 35 cm the common noctule bat is one of the largest bat species in Western and Central Europe. When hunting, it often starts flying in the early dusk, much earlier than most other European bats. This species flight pattern is both high and fast above the tree tops of forested areas that are its preferred habitat. When roosting through the day, the noctule bat usually seeks out tree holes or even bat boxes attached to the tree trunks.

Generally noctule bats live in forests, but some populations can be found in towns. There are many noctules living in Hamburg, Vienna, Brno and other some other central European cities.

In addition to the typical ultrasounds the noctule bat may expel shrill cries. The function of these sounds is still unknown. Common Noctule bats mainly feed on beetles, moths and winged ants.

In the winter, noctule bats hibernate like all bats of the temperate zones. Tree holes are not warm enough for this purpose, so the noctule bats search natural caves or man-made objects like church steeples. Sometimes the summer territories and the hibernating places are hundreds of kilometres away from each other.

The common noctule bat is declining like all European bats, but the other European noctules are even rarer. The lesser noctule and the giant noctule live in forests only and never in towns.

There are six species within this genus:

1. Nyctalus noctula (Common Noctule bat), Europe, Asia, North Africa
2. Nyctalus leisleri (lesser noctule or Leisler's bat), Europe, West Asia, North Africa
3. Nyctalus lasiopterus (giant noctule or greater noctule), Europe, West Asia, North Africa
4. Nyctalus aviator (birdlike noctule), Japan, Korea, Eastern China
5. Nyctalus montanus (mountain noctule), Afghanistan, Northern India, Nepal
6. Nyctalus azoreum (Azores noctule), Azores

See also: microbat