White-winged vampire bat
| White-winged vampire bat | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Diaemus youngi | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Chiroptera |
| Family: | Phyllostomidae |
| Subfamily: | Desmodontinae |
| Genus: | Diaemus Miller, 1906 |
| Species: | D. youngi |
| Binomial name | |
| Diaemus youngi Jentink, 1893 | |
The white-winged vampire bat (Diaemus youngi), a species of vampire bat, is the only member of the genus Diaemus. They are found from Mexico to northern Argentina and are present on the islands of Trinidad and Margarita. In Trinidad, up to thirty Diaemus bats were found in a hollow immortelle tree, and one was found in a well-lit cave, along with Desmodus rotundus and Saccopteryx bilineata. Flying individuals are easily identified by their white wingtips.[1]
They seem to prefer the blood of birds to that of mammals, and usually feed while hanging on the underside of a branch. Not surprisingly, they do not perform the flight-initiating jumps that characterize the common vampire bat, Desmodus rotundus. Though not as agile on the ground as the common vampire bat, they are quite proficient at climbing branches. White-winged vampires are much more docile around human beings than common vampire bats, and are also extremely vocal in the audible range.
They have two large oral glands:
- ". . . which can only be seen when the bat's mouth is opened and the glands brought forward like two small cannons. With open mouth, the bat will suddenly make an explosive, hissing sound followed by a foul smelling odour which seems to come from these glands. The use of the glands is not known." [2]
- "The bat opens its mouth when disturbed, bringing to the corners of its mouth two cup-shaped glands, each 2 to 3 mm in diameter, nearly filling the mouth. When necessary the glands can be directed forward, and with a noisy "psst" may emit a fine jet of liquid which has a powerful mustelid, skunk-like odor offensive to many people. Extractions tests made in Trinidad indicated the presence of several common amino acids and an unidentified sulphur-containing compound."[3]
This bat carries infectious disease, including rabies, in Trinidad.[4]
References
- ↑ A.M. Greenhall and U. Schmidt, editors. 1988. Natural History of Vampire Bats, CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida. ISBN 0-8493-6750-6; ISBN 978-0-8493-6750-2, p. 122
- ↑ Greenhall, Arthur M. 1961. Bats in Agriculture. A Ministry of Agriculture Publication. Trinidad and Tobago, p. 10.
- ↑ A.M. Greenhall and U. Schmidt, editors. 1988. Natural History of Vampire Bats, CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida. ISBN 0-8493-6750-6; ISBN 978-0-8493-6750-2, p. 125.
- ↑ Greenhall (1961), p. 10.
- Carter G, B Fenton, P Faure. 2009. "White-winged vampire bats exchange contact calls." Canadian Journal of Zoology. 87, 604-608. doi:10.1139/Z09-051. PDF
- Carter G, M Skowronski, P Faure, B Fenton. 2008. "Antiphonal calling allows individual discrimination in white-winged vampire bats. Animal Behaviour. 76, 1343-1355 doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2008.04.023. PDF
- Greenhall, Arthur M. 1961. Bats in Agriculture. A Ministry of Agriculture Publication. Trinidad and Tobago.
- A.M. Greenhall and U. Schmidt, editors. 1988. Natural History of Vampire Bats, CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida. ISBN 0-8493-6750-6; ISBN 978-0-8493-6750-2
- Barquez, R., Perez, S., Miller, B. & Diaz, M. (2008). "Diaemus youngi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- Mammalian Species Account
External links
- Vampires: The Real Story - about the vampire bat
- Bat World - An all-volunteer, non-salaried, non-profit organization devoted to the education, conservation and rehabilitation of bats
- Bat Conservation International - A website devoted to the education, conservation and study of bat
- Graduate student research on white-winged vampire bats