How Many Species of Bats Are There?
Before we explore bat diets, it's important to explain that there are over 1,400 species of bats in the world. Because there are so many, some species are extremely distinctive in appearance. Flying foxes, for example, are jungle-dwelling bats with a wingspan of nearly a meter and a half, or 5 feet. This may sound like nightmare fuel, but it's important to note that they are quite docile and exclusively feed on fruit. The three extant species of vampire bats, on the other hand, each feed exclusively on blood. While this is terrifying in concept, they are usually quite harmless, feeding mostly on livestock animals and wild mammals. The only true danger vampires pose to humans is the risk of rabies transmission. Fortunately, they all live in Central and South America, so residents of the U.S. and Canada need not worry.Which Bats Live in the United States and Canada?
The current count in the U.S. is 47 species. Because of its northern climate, Canada has only 18. The most common bat in Canada is the little brown bat, an aptly named species that weighs around 9 grams. Each Canadian species feeds solely on insects, and this makes them extremely important for controlling pest bugs like mosquitos and grasshoppers. Recently, North American bats have been exposed to a devastating fungal infection called white-nose syndrome. The infection is spreading rapidly across the continent and can kill the vast majority of affected animals in a colony. Because they're so good at controlling harmful insects like mosquitoes, researchers are now hard at work trying to preserve unaffected populations.