Vampire bats are bats whose food source is blood, a dietary trait called hematophagy. There are three bat species that feed
solely on blood: the Common vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus), the Hairy-legged Vampire Bat (Diphylla ecaudata), and the White-winged
Vampire Bat (Diaemus youngi). All three species are native to the Americas, ranging from Mexico to Brazil, Chile, and Argentina.
The Neotropical fruit bats (Artibeus) are a genus of bats within the subfamily Stenodermatinae. The genus consists of 19 species,
which are native to Central and South America.
The genus Vampyrum contains only one species, the Spectral Bat (V. spectrum). Some alternate names for this species are the
False Vampire Bat, Linnaeus's False Vampire Bat and the Spectral Vampire Bat. Confusingly, they are not related to the Old
World family of large carnivorous bats to be found in the Megadermatidae that are also called false vampires.
The Common Vampire Bat (Desmodus rotundus) is a species of vampire bat. They have burnt amber colored fur on their backside
while soft and velvety light brown fur covers their belly. They have large pointy ears and a flat leaf-shaped nose. Their
babies use tiny thumbs in the middle of the wing to cling on the mother’s furry belly. Vampire bats are about 9 cm (3.5 in)
long and have a wingspan of 18 cm (7 in). They commonly weigh about 57 grams (2 oz), but that can double after just one feeding.
The Jamaican, Common or Mexican fruit bat (Artibeus jamaicensis) is a fruit bat native to Central and South America. It is
also an uncommon resident of the Southern Bahamas. Its distinctive features include the absence of an external tail and a
minimal, U-shaped interfemoral membrane. The coat is gray-brown and has a mild, soap-like odor, and is slightly paler on the
underside. It is known to have a nose that looks somewhat like a third ear, and it also has pointier ears than related bats.
The Long-legged Bat, Macrophyllum macrophyllum, is a bat species from South and Central America. It hunts close over the water
surfaces of lakes and slowly flowing streams, where it seizes insects right above or directly off the surface in a similar
manner to Noctilio leporinus and Myotis daubentoni. This is an interesting example of convergent evolution which may imply
just how valuable a habitat the water surface is to insectivorous bats.
