1) Bats make up approximately 21% of all mammal species and are the second largest order of mammals. They are divided into two suborders: Megachiroptera and Microchiroptera. 2) Bats play an important ecological role through pollination, seed dispersal, insect pest control, and contributing to forest ecosystem health. An estimated 300 plant species rely on bats for propagation. 3) Despite their importance, many bat species are threatened due to habitat loss and disturbance of roosting sites. Bats represent 14% of all mammal species listed as threatened by the IUCN. Their decline could seriously impact forest ecosystems and agriculture.

1. CHIROPTERA
Aswathy Chandran U B
Teaching Assistant
Department of Wildlife Sciences
College of Forestry
Kerala Agricultural University
1

2. Bats

3. Folklore, superstitions & legends
Most misunderstood group
They symbolize – death & night
Batty – crazy – irrational person
Old bat – ugly or unpleasant person
Blind as a bat – for a person with defective eye sight
If a bat fly over your house there’ll be a death in
that house

4. Bram Stoker’s
Dracula

5. Vampire bats
Seen only in S & C America
Weighs about 5 g
Feeds primarily on blood of domestic animals

6. Bio-medical research are on to identify the protein
that prevent blood clotting, which are present in the
saliva of vampire bats
US firm Merck found that protein isolated from
vampire bat saliva (BatPA) are 20 times more
specific than any other substances so far available
that can dissolve the clots
Facts

7. Folklore, superstitions & legends
In Macedonia sighting of bats are considered
as good omen
In Mexico – the pregnant women go to the caves
where the vampire bats roost to ensure smooth
delivery
The farmers in Peru worship bats for better
yield for their agricultural crops
In Chinese, ‘Fu’ = good luck, and it also means bat

8. Important Characters
 True flying mammal
 Nocturnal habit
 Cryptic nature
 Overlapping morphological characters
 Bats perform extremely important ecological
functions

9. ECHOLOCATION
Bats produce ultra sonic sounds
Human can perceive sound with
frequencies between 20 to 20,000 Hz
Bats – 100 to 200,000 Hz

11. Distribution and abundance
• Bats are widely distributed and have been recorded
throughout the world excepting the Antarctic and a few
Oceanic Islands
• Out of the total mammal species of 5,416, bats constitute 21
percent

12. CLASSIFICATION
 Bats - Second largest group of mammals in the world
12
Chiroptera
Megachiroptera 1 family
Microchiroptera 17 family
187species
963 species

13. CHIROPTERA(1,150)
• Megachiroptera (187)
1. Pteropodidae
• Microchiroptera (963)
1. Rhinopomatidae
2. Nycteridae
3. Megadermatidae
4. Rhinolophidae
5. Hipposideridae
6. Myzopodidae
7. Mystacinidae
8. Noctilionidae
9. Phyllostomidae
10. Desmodontidae
11. Natalidae
12. Furipteridae
13. Thyropteridae
14. Emballonuridae
15. Molossidae
16. Vespertilionidae
17. Mormoopidae

14. Bats in Kerala
Total 29 species
• 5 species of fruit bats (Pteropodidae)
• 3 species of sheath-tailed bats (Emballonuridae)
• 2 species of false-vampire bats (Megadermatidae)
• 3 species of leaf-nosed bats (Hipposideridae)
• 4 species of horseshoe bats (Rhinolophidae)
• 11 species of evening bats (Vespertilionidae)
• 1 species of free-tailed bat (Molossidae)

15. Pteropodidae
(Fruit bats)
Emballonuridae
(Sheath-tailed bats)
Vespertilionidae
(Evening bats)
Megadermatidae
(False Vampire bats)
Molossidae
(Free-tailed bats)
Rhinolophidae
(Horseshoe bats)

16. RhinopomatidaePteropodidae Emballonuridae
Megadermatidae VespertilionidaeRhinolophidae
Molossidae

17. Pteropodidae (fruit bats)
Flying Fox
Pteropus giganteus

18. Short-nosed Fruit bat
Cynopterus sphinx
Lesser dog-faced Fruit Bat
Cynopterus brachyotis

19. Fulvous Fruit Bat
Rousettus leschenaulti

20. Salim Ali’s Fruit bat
Latidens salimalii

21. Rhinopomatidae (Mouse-tailed Bat)
Lesser Mouse-tailed bat
Rhinopoma hardwickii

22. Emballonuridae (Sheath-tailed Bat)
Black Bearded Tomb Bat
Taphozous melanopogon

23. Lesser False-vampire Bat
Megaderma spasma
Greater False-vampire Bat
Megaderma lyra
MEGADERMATIDAE
(False Vampire bats)

24. Horse-shoe/ Leaf-nosed Bat

25. Rufous Horseshoe Bat
Rhinolophus rouxii
Rhinolophidae (Horseshoe bats)

26. Fulvous Leaf-nosed Bat
Hipposideros fulvus
Hipposideridae (Leaf-nosed bats)

27. Painted Bat
Kerivoula picta
Vespertilionidae (Evening Bat)

28. Least Pipistrelle
Pipistrellus tenuis

29. Lesser Yellow House bat
Scotophilus kuhlii

30. Molossidae (Free-tailed Bat)
Egyptian Free-tailed Bat
Tadarida aegyptiaca

31. Ecological significance of bats
• Pollination
• Seed dispersal
• Succession
• Insect pest suppression

32. Why conserve bats ?
Bats play an important role in the existence of
forest ecosystem
About 300 plant species are known to be
propagated by frugivorous bats
The loss of frugivorous bat community can
affect the distribution and genetic structure of
the plant population

33. Pollination and Seed dispersal
Besides dispersal of fruits they also help in pollination
Many trees and shrubs that the bats visit are commercially
important as a food resource or for other purposes
They include,
a. Fruits: avocados, banana, figs, guavas and mangos
b. Nuts: cashew
c. Spices: cloves & vanilla
d. Rope making: sisal & kapok
e. Timber: balsa & other timbers

34. Why conserve bats ?
Many plant species have developed specialized
flowers to attract and accommodate bats
Bat pollinated flowers such as those of the
calabash tree (Crescentia), sausage tree (Kigelia),
saguaro cactus (Carnegiea) and agave (Agave)
are usually white, creamy or greenish in colour
and generally have strong musky or sour scents
These flowers open at night rather than during
the day

35. 35

36. Why conserve bats ?
Insectivorous bats, the second group of bats,
play an important role in maintaining the insect-
pest population in agricultural as well as forest
lands
It has been found that insectivorous bats on an
average consume the equivalent of their own
body weight of insects each night

37. Why conserve bats ?
The False Vampire Bats are considered as a ‘good friend of
farmers’ as this species, consume rats and mice which
destroys different grains and damage crops

38. IUCNThreatenedspeciesofMammal(2000)
(Totalspecies=1130)
Insectivora
14%
Dasyuromorph
2%
others 7%
Artiodactyla 6%
Carnivora
6%
Chiroptera
21%
Rodentia
29%
Primates 10%
Diprotodont 3%
Didelphimorph
2%

39. MammalspeciesIUCNcategorised
asextinct(2000)
(Totalspecies=83)
Diprotodont 7%
Paramelemorph
4%
Rodentia
53%
Chiroptera
14%
Carnivora 4%
Artiodactyla 6%
others 5%
Insectivora 7%