How do bats find food in the dark?

Bats

• Bats are the famous mammals of the order Chiroptera.
• They are mostly famous for their habit of hanging upside down on a branch of a tree or any other support.
• Bats are the only mammal capable of sustaining true flight among all other animals.
• Bats have been classified into various different species depending on the things required for their survival.
• Some bats depend on insects to fill up their stomach known as microbats, whereas some bats depend on fruits to satisfy their appetite, known as megabats.
• There are even some bat species that live only on blood and these are known as vampire bats.
• The external features of each species of bat are different.
• In general, bats have sharp teeth, large eye sockets, small ears and a big nose.
• The most special feature of bats is that they don’t have forearms, instead, they have wings.
• The wings of a bat are made up of cartilage and a negligible amount of calcium.
• Bats are mostly found at night flying up in the sky.

Bats have many things about them that attract people’s interest. It can be either their wings and their uses or it can be the way they hunt for food in the darkness of the night.

How do bats find food in the dark?

• Bats are nocturnal animals. That means they are active at only night time.
• That’s why there is a question based on their night habit on how they can find their food in the darkness of night.
• At night, the vision of the bat is very limited. Instead, they have a great sense of hearing at night.
• Bats find their food through the especially unique system found in bats called “echolocation”.
• While flying in the air, the bat produces high pitched sounds.
• The human ear cannot hear the sound produced by the bats, as these sounds are ultrasonic waves and are not in the range of human hearing.
• As the sound produced by the bat travels through space, there will be a returning echo to it if encountered by any obstacle.
• The returning echo gives the bat an idea of the shape, size and type of obstacle.
• This makes them aware of the prey and its location and helps them find their food.

Fun Facts:

1. Bats have a life span of more than 30 years.
2. Bats can fly at the speed of 60 miles per hour.
3. Baby bats are known as “pups”.

Related Questions:

1. Write about the bats and their habitat.
2. What is an echo?
3. What is the human hearing range?

True or False:

1. Bats belong to the reptile group.
2. Bats can only eat insects.
3. Vampire bats depend on the fruit for their survival.
4. Bats are found in the daytime flying in the sky.
5. Bats have a limited hearing at night.

Objective Quiz:

1. Bats are _________ animal.
   1. Nocturnal.
   2. Diurnal.
   3. Both 1) and 2).
   4. None of the above.
2. At night, bats have a limited ______.
   1. Vision.
   2. Smell.
   3. Taste.
   4. Hearing.
3. The ______ of bats is made up of cartilage.
   1. Wings.
   2. Teeth.
   3. Ear.
   4. Eyes.
4. Bats do not have _______.
   1. Forearms.
   2. Nails.
   3. Eyes.
   4. Ears.
5. The system through which bats are able to find their food in the dark is called ______.
   1. Echolocation.
   2. Exhortation.
   3. Echofood.
   4. None of the above.