JAMAICAN FRUIT BAT

ORDER

Chiroptera (bats)

FAMILY

Phyllostomidae (New World leaf-nosed bats)

HABITAT AND RANGE

These bats can be found in the dry deciduous and tropical evergreen forests of Mexico, south to northern Argentina and the Lesser and Greater Antilles.

IDENTIFICATION

The genus Artibeus is characterized by four white facial stripes, pointed ears, and soft, short fur of a dull brownish, grayish, or black silver-tinged color, and paler under parts. This bat has no external tail and a narrow interfemoral membrane.

DIET

Mainly frugivorous but they will supplement their diet with pollen, nectar and small insects if necessary.

REPRODUCTION AND LIFESPAN

The reproductive cycle of fruit bats is closely timed to the fruit season with higher reproduction rates occurring during productive seasons. Fruit bats will assemble into harems of up to 25 females protected by a single male. Gestation lasts about 4 months and produces a single offspring. Twins, however, do occasionally occur. Lifespan is generally 7 years but can reach 10 years.

NOTES

Flowering plants are heavily dependant on fruit bats. Fruit bats pollinate 70% of the world’s flowers when they are seeking pollen and nectar for consumption. By eating fruit, they aid in the dispersal of seeds by passing the seeds through their digestive tract and excreting it in their feces (a built in fertilizer for the seed). Not all bats can echolocate. Megachioptera or flying foxes are large diurnal species that have large eyes and good eyesight and do not posses the ability to echolocate. Echolocating bats tend to have oversized ears, small eyes and strange structures around their nose and mouth that are thought to channel their echolocation chirps. If a bat has small ears, no structures around its mouth and nose and large eyes, it probably can’t echolocate.