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Vampire Bat

Mammals

Vampire bats are a small group of bat species native to Central and South America, unique among mammals for feeding exclusively on the blood of other animals, most often livestock, birds or wild mammals, using heat-sensing pits on the face to locate blood vessels close to the skin. A vampire bat makes a small, precise bite with razor-sharp teeth and laps up blood using an anticoagulant in its saliva that keeps the wound from clotting while it feeds, typically causing little harm to the host animal. Vampire bats live in colonies in caves, hollow trees and other roosts, and they are notable for a rare form of cooperative behavior in which well-fed individuals regurgitate blood to share with roost-mates that failed to feed, helping prevent starvation. The common vampire bat remains widespread and is classified as being of least concern.

Facts
Classification
Diet
Parasitic 2
System (Realm)
Terrestrial 3
Relationship to People
Agricultural or Structural Pest 2
Living or Extinct
Yes 1
Derived from this species' own Conservation Status: this atlas's IUCN category list has no Extinct value, so a set conservation-status is itself evidence of living status (w-bfill-g5-0924 browse backfill).
Scientific Name
Desmodus rotundus (subfamily Desmodontinae) 1
Conservation Status
Least Concern 1
IUCN cites wide distribution, presumed large population and tolerance of habitat modification as the basis for Least Concern.
Identification
Distinguishing Appearance
Short-haired, with silver-gray fur on the underside demarcated from darker fur on the back, a deeply grooved lower lip, and a flat, leaf-shaped nose. 1
Connections

Child Taxon Of

Chiroptera, Taxa
Source Catalogue of Life
In the Other Atlases
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Belize, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Brazil, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Chile, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Colombia, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Costa Rica, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Ecuador, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: El Salvador, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Guatemala, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Guyana, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Honduras, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Mexico, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Nicaragua, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Panama, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Peru, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: South America, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Suriname, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Venezuela, found in there.
Sources
1. Vampire Bat (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Lead paragraph, first sentence
    The common vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) is a small, leaf-nosed bat native to the Americas.
  • Physical description section
    The common vampire bat is short-haired, with silver-gray fur on its undersides, demarcated from the darker fur on its back. It has a deeply grooved lower lip, and a flat, leaf-shaped nose.
  • Lead section, conservation status sentence
    Its conservation status is categorized as least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature
View the Source
2. Common vampire bat (Wikipedia)
  • feeds on livestock and is a carrier of rabies; the common vampire bat is considered a pest
  • carrier of rabies
  • practices hematophagy, mainly feeding on the blood of livestock
View the Source
3. GBIF Species API
GBIF Species APIView the Source
Wikidata: Vampire Bat
Wikidata Q300981, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source
Catalogue of Life
Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of LifeChild Taxon Of: ChiropteraView the Source
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