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Hoary bat - LASIURUS CINEREUS
Endangered
Class: Animals with Milk Glands (Mammalia)
The Name "Bat": "Bat" comes from Old Norse "ledhrblaka," "leather flapper." It became "bakka" and then "bat."
Description: A heavy-bodied bat of medium size with short, rounded ears edged with black; simple nose; tail membrane dorsally furred. Pelage thick, face and throat buff to yellow, body brown with hairs tipped white, giving a frosted appearance. Length of head and body about 3.4 in, forearm about 2 in; weight 0.7-1.2 oz.
Location: Throughout the Americas from southern Canada to central Chile and Argentina; Hawaii; Hispaniola.
Habitat: Forests and woodlands.
Behavior: Largest bat in eastern North America (and the only bat native to Hawaii), this species breeds in its northern summer range and winters in the southern U.S. and possibly in Mexico. Some South American populations may also migrate. Its complex migratory habits are incompletely known. Vagrants, probably blown off course, have been found in Iceland, Orkney, and Bermuda. Individuals remaining far north in winter may hibernate during the coldest weather. The hoary bat, usually solitary, roosts in leaf clusters in trees, at 10-15 feet above the ground, and emerges in late evening to forage. Fast-flying, these bats catch and eat insects (mainly moths) on the wing.
Reproduction: In North America the young are born in May-June, after what is probably an 8-month gestation period; there are usually 2 per litter (occasionally 1).
Go to the Bats Page to get a general discussion of this flying mammal.
Go to the Bats Index to study the other bats included in America Zoo.
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