The greater false vampire bat (''Lyroderma lyra'') is a species of bat in the family

Megadermatidae Megadermatidae, or false vampire bats, are a family of bats found from central Africa, eastwards through southern Asia, and into Australia. They are relatively large bats, ranging from 6.5 cm to 14 cm in head-body length. They have lar ...

, the false vampire bats. It is native to Asia. It is also known as the Indian false vampire bat or greater false-vampire

Description

This species is in length and weighs . The average forearm length is about . It has large ears and no tail. Its fur is blue-gray in color overall and brownish gray on the underside. It has an erect noseleaf about 10 millimeters long.

Distribution

This bat is widespread throughout South Asia and Southeast Asia. It occurs in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia,

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, India,

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...

, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan,

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Biology

This species is carnivorous; its diet includes other bats, small birds, reptiles, fish, and large insects. It is a gleaning bat, one which captures prey from the ground and from water surfaces. It takes advantage of many habitat types. Adults hunt from dusk to dawn, commuting up to 4 kilometers. ''L. lyra'' uses a combination of hunting strategies. About 85% of prey is captured during short searching flights in which it flies about half a meter above the ground. It also utilizes a sit-and-wait strategy, perching about two meters above the ground to wait for prey. It uses echolocation. It is capable of hunting using both vision and passively listening for its prey, and has also been observed catching prey in complete darkness without echolocation. Females segregate themselves from males after mating. Gestation lasts 150 to 160 days, and the female bears one or two pups. Females carry small pups with them during foraging, but leave larger pups in the roost. Young nurse for 2 to 3 months.

Notes

References

*Audet, D., et al. (1991)
Foraging behavior of the Indian false vampire bat, ''Megaderma lyra'' (Chiroptera: Megadermatidae).
''Biotropica'' 23(1) 63-67. *Ratcliffe, J. M., et al. (2005)
Hunting in unfamiliar space: echolocation in the Indian false vampire bat, ''Megaderma lyra'', when gleaning prey.
''Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology'' 58, 157-64.

External links

''Megaderma lyra''.
EOL: Encyclopedia of Life.
''Megaderma lyra''.
NCBI Taxonomy Browser.