How much blood can a vampire bat actually drink at one time?
Vampire bats are the collective name for all species of blood-eating bats in the family Desmodontidae. They are not large in body size, have no exposed tail, and their fur is mainly dark brown. Their appearance looks very ugly. They only begin to be active after dark and set out to forage at a fixed time every night——feeding on the blood of animals. Different species also have different targets for blood feeding. Now let us take a look together at how much blood a vampire bat drinks at one time!
How much blood does a vampire bat drink at one time?
Vampire bats have grooves under the tongue and on both sides, and the blood flows through the grooves. The tongue can be extended and slowly retracted, thus forming a partial vacuum in the mouth, which helps blood flow into the mouth. Vampire bats are very greedy and are never satisfied with how much blood they drink. Each time they fill their belly full, they can drink about 50 grams of blood, equivalent to half of their body weight. Sometimes they even drink as much as 200 grams of blood, equivalent to one times their body weight, yet they can still take off. They are truly veritable “vampires”. Each blood-feeding session lasts about 10-plus minutes, with the longest reaching 40 minutes.
Are there vampire bats in China?
There are no vampire bats in China. Worldwide there are only 3 species of bats that feed solely on blood, namely the common vampire bat, the hairy-legged vampire bat and the white-winged vampire bat. All 3 species of vampire bats are native to the Americas, and their blood-feeding range covers Mexico, Brazil, Chile and Argentina. In January 2010, a series of vampire bat bites occurred in the Amazon region of Peru, causing great panic among local residents.
What harm do vampire bats cause?
Vampire bats can feed on the blood of several kinds of targets in one night. Any stationary warm-blooded animal can be attacked, but vampire bats rarely bite dogs, because dogs can hear higher-frequency sounds and can detect the approach of vampire bats. Sometimes vampire bats also bite sleeping people. Although the wound is not large, the amount of bleeding may be considerable. After being bitten, the large patch of bloodstains is startling, but the real danger is the transmission of disease, for example, when feeding on animal blood they can transmit trypanosomiasis of horses, and when biting people and livestock they are most likely to transmit rabies.
What kinds of vampire bats are there?
In taxonomy, vampire bats belong to the family Desmodontidae and the genus Desmodus. There are 3 species of vampire bats in total: the common vampire bat, the white-winged vampire bat and the hairy-legged vampire bat, all distributed in the tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas. Vampire bats are all social animals, living in groups on the top walls of valley caves, seemingly sharing the joy of one another's company and living a conspicuous social life. They roost in places that are almost completely dark. In their hiding places, the accumulated digested blood gives off a strong ammonia odor. During the day they lurk in caves, and before midnight they fly out of the cave, often flying at low altitude about 1 m above the ground to search for food.