Eastern Red Bat
Lasiurus borealis
Summary 2
The eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) is a species of bat from the family Vespertilionidae. See also the desert red bat (Lasiurus blossevillii), a related species.
Associations 3
Predators of red bats include birds of prey and opossums. Humans and human constructions have also taken their toll on red bats. "There have been documented cases of these bats being impaled by barbed wire, . . . entrapped on road surface oil . . ., flying into lighthouses . . ., and radiator grills of automobiles . . ." (Baker, 1983, pg. 123).
Red bats avoid predators through the use of camouflage.
Known Predators:
- birds of prey
- opossums
- birds of prey (Falconiformes)
- opossums (Didelphis virginiana)
Anti-predator Adaptations: cryptic
Conservation status 4
Red bats are secure over most of their range and are not considered threatened.
Temperate North American bats are now threatened by a fungal disease called “white-nose syndrome.” This disease has devastated eastern North American bat populations at hibernation sites since 2007. The fungus, Geomyces destructans, grows best in cold, humid conditions that are typical of many bat hibernacula. The fungus grows on, and in some cases invades, the bodies of hibernating bats and seems to result in disturbance from hibernation, causing a debilitating loss of important metabolic resources and mass deaths. Mortality rates at some hibernation sites have been as high as 90%. While there are currently no reports of Lasiurus borealis mortalities as a result of white-nose syndrome, the disease continues to expand its range in North America.
US Federal List: no special status
CITES: no special status
State of Michigan List: no special status
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern
Cyclicity 5
Comments: Nightly activity reportedly peaks 2-3 and 5-6 hours after sunset. In northern latitudes, may emerge prior to dusk. May hibernate in winter, sometimes emerging on warm evenings to feed. In southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina, active and feeds throughout the year (in winter, generally at temperatures above 9 C (Padgett and Rose 1991, Whitaker et al. 1997).
Description 6
"Common and widespread from far southern Canada throughout most of the United States and Mexico, and farther south through Central America and into South America, the red bat requires trees and shrubs for roosting. It is remarkable for its richly-colored reddish pelage, with the male brighter than the female. Although the red bat is solitary, it migrates in groups. Females often give birth to twins and sometimes to quadruplets. The young are born hairless, with eyes closed, and weigh only 0.5 g, but by 3-6 weeks they are covered with fur, have their eyes open, are half their mother's weight, and can fly."
Links:
Mammal Species of the World
Click here for The American Society of Mammalogists species account
Distribution 7
Lasiurus borealis, or red bats, are widely distributed in forested regions, occurring from southern Canada through Central America and into Chile and Argentina. Red bats migrate to warmer regions during winter.
Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Native ); neotropical (Native )
Food habits 8
Red bats are insectivorous. They capture insecta while flying like many other insectivorous bats.
Red bats often hunt for insects around lights. Hunting for food begins at dusk and the bat hunts within 500 m of a light source. Generally there is only one peak feeding time during the night, but there are records of these bats searching for food throughout the night. Red bats eat many different kinds of insects: lepidoptera, coleoptera, hemiptera, Formicidae, diptera, and others.
Red bats swoop through a concentration of potential prey, fixing on a target within 5 to 10 m. They attack insects, on average, every thirty seconds and are successful fourty percent of the time. If a bat is stalking a moth using echolocation the moth can hear this and will try to flee the attack by diving. The bat will follow the moth into a steep dive and often will pull away within inches of the ground. Humans observing this predator-prey interaction only see the bat and not the fleeing moth and may believe that the bat is acting aggressively towards them.
When hunting, red bats hold their heads and bodies in a distinct way. It has been said that if you look at a rural street light and see a bat dipping and diving, that you are most likely seeing a red bat.
Animal Foods: insects
Habitat 9
Comments: Prefers forested areas, wooded hedgerows, and areas with large shade trees (e.g., city parks). Summer roosts usually are in tree foliage (or in Spanish moss in some regions), 1.5 -6 m above ground; site must be open underneath to allow easy exit and entry. Avoids caves and buildings during summer/winter. Partial to elm trees in the eastern U.S. (McClure 1942). Nonmigratory individuals hibernate in trees, probably under bark or in hollow branches (Caire et al. 1989). Solitary female roosts with young in tree foliage.
Sources and Credits
- (c) Anita Gould, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Anita Gould, http://www.flickr.com/photos/anitagould/123840781/
- Adapted by rkkessler from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lasiurus_borealis
- (c) The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/31400897
- (c) The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/31400901
- (c) NatureServe, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://eol.org/data_objects/28881925
- (c) Smithsonian Institution, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://eol.org/data_objects/16146884
- (c) The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/31400891
- (c) The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/25065252
- (c) NatureServe, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://eol.org/data_objects/28881923
