Large horseshoe bat, photo and description. Species: Rhinolophus ferrumequinum = Greater horseshoe bat Greater horseshoe bat interesting facts

Great Horseshoe Bat

Rhinolophus ferrumequinum

Spreading: The north comes into Russia. edge of the range. Great horseshoe bat found in the territory of the North. Caucasus from Krasnodar region to Dagestan. Outside Russia, it is distributed over a significant part of Europe, in the North. Africa; further the range extends from Western Asia and the Caucasus along the foothills of the Pamirs, Himalayas and Tibet to Korea and Japan.

Habitat:Habitats are confined to the foothills and low mountains, as well as to flat areas, where there are shelters suitable for animals: natural and artificial dungeons, gullies in river cliffs, human buildings. IN summer time Most males and young females stay alone or in small groups; breeding females form aggregations of 200-500 individuals, often adjacent to colonies of other bat species. The female gives birth to one calf at the end of June. Apparently, they overwinter in the same place where reproduction occurs, alone or in groups of 5-15 individuals of both sexes; Some individuals may migrate to more southerly locations. districts. It is possible that some individuals are associated with only one shelter throughout their entire life. Departure for hunting is late, after dark. Food is provided by various flying insects, including relatively large Coleoptera. High mortality is observed in the first year of life, primarily during wintering; individual life expectancy (according to observations in France) is very high - 20 years or more.

Number:The number of large horseshoe bats in Russia can be approximately estimated at no more than several tens of thousands of individuals. The great horseshoe bat is relatively protected from direct anthropogenic impact in winter time due to the sporadic distribution of individuals (at least in the Caucasus). But the open arrangement of brood colonies, together with low fertility, leads to high sensitivity of animals to increased disturbance factors. The development of caving tourism has a negative impact; Horseshoe bats are often subject to immoderate collection fees and easily become victims of senseless extermination. Change in architectural styles, as well as the reconstruction of old buildings, deprive animals of part of their summer shelters. Large numbers of animals can die as a result of pesticide poisoning. The general degradation of biota associated with various human agricultural activities, including changes in the composition and dynamics of the number of food items, has a significant impact on the state of the greater horseshoe bat population.

Representatives of this family of bats are easily distinguished from others bats peculiar outgrowths on the nasal part of the head. However, these features of the structure of the muzzle are easy to see only when holding the animal in your hands, and not when the horseshoe bat flies out to hunt and flashes in the dense twilight. The silhouette of the animal also has features. The posterior caudal section of the membrane is not extended downwards in a wedge-shape, as in other bats, but is cut off more or less evenly.

The flight of horseshoe bats is noisy, fluttering, with frequent flapping of the wings. In flight, they make low, creaking-like sounds. These animals cannot walk on a horizontal surface, and they can be seen either in flight or while resting, suspended from the vaults of towers or the ceiling of caves. When at rest, the horseshoe bat clings to the uneven stones with the claws of its hind limbs and hangs upside down, wrapping its wings around it like a cloak and throwing its tail over its back. At the same time, its legs seem unusually long, which helps to distinguish the sleeping horseshoe bat from other bats.

In Russia there are 4 species of horseshoe bats. All of them can be seen only in the Caucasus. They differ from each other in size and structure of leathery outgrowths on the muzzle.

Horseshoe bats live under the domes of religious buildings, cave vaults, in rock crevices and stone ruins. Since these bats cannot move on a flat surface, they settle in caves and cavities with a wide entrance, into which they can fly rather than crawl. It is quite obvious that we will not see traces of their paws and wings on the dusty surface of stones and wooden floors of buildings.

Horseshoe bats feed on insects and other invertebrates with soft integuments - mosquitoes, midges, and small butterflies. They eat prey not only on the fly, but often in their resting places, hanging upside down. Under the animals sleeping on the ceiling you can see the droppings and remains of eaten insects - the wings of moths and the covers of beetles.

In the summer, horseshoe bats spend their days near the exit of the cave, and in the winter they move deeper. But even in the middle of winter they lead a fairly active lifestyle, as evidenced by fresh droppings and stomachs filled with semi-digested food. By the way, among the remains of the winter food of horseshoe bats, in addition to the moths living in the caves, the remains of spiders were also found.

In nature, there are no cases of horseshoe bats drinking water, as many others do the bats.

The animals fly out to feed approximately 30 minutes after sunset and hunt throughout the first half of the night. When tired, they return to rest in their daytime shelters or hang from the stems of grass hanging over the cliff. They fly out hunting again before dawn.

They often form large aggregations, up to 500 individuals. These are almost exclusively females and juveniles. Adult males rest separately, alone or in pairs. They are not placed on the ceiling crowded, but separately, without touching each other.

All horseshoe bats give birth to one baby. It clings tightly to the groin area and for the first days travels on its mother's belly, with its head turned toward her tail. But soon the females begin to leave the cub in the cave and, returning, feed it with chewed food. Horseshoe bats live up to 15 years, but do not survive in captivity.

Great horseshoe bat , like other horseshoe bats, has a characteristic leathery growth on the nose, similar to a horseshoe. It serves to transmit directional location signals.

Row - Chiroptera
Family - horseshoe bats
Basic data:
DIMENSIONS
Body length: 5.2-7.1 cm.
Tail length: 3.1-4.3 cm.
Wingspan: 34-40 cm.
Weight: 13-27 g.

Reproduction
Puberty: females - from 2-3 years, males - from 2 years.
Mating season: autumn and wintering.
Pregnancy: about 3 months.
Number of cubs: 1.

LIFESTYLE
Habits: sleeps and winters in colonies.
Food: moths, beetles.
Lifespan: about 30 years old.

Related species. There are about 80 species of horseshoe bats known in the world; 5 species live in Europe. There are about 80 species of horseshoe bats. One trait sets them apart from other bats: when they sleep, they curl their wings up instead of lining them along their body. Of all the bats, only some species of bats and horseshoe bats fall into hibernation.
Food. Large horseshoe bats feed on insects, mainly mole crickets and beetles, which are caught on heaps of humus. Since they are active at night, these bats fly out of their hiding places only after dark, that is, later than other types of bats. They have regular routes and feeding areas.
Like most insectivorous bats, greater horseshoe bats catch food with their teeth or using their membranous wings. They use their wings like hands and use them to guide insects directly into their mouths. Large horseshoe bats eat large prey while hanging on a branch, and small prey while flying. The special shape of the nose allows it to emit ultrasonic signals even while eating.
LIFESTYLE. The greater horseshoe bat is common in warm areas, mainly on open area, overgrown with sparse forests and groves. He rests in caves. For wintering, horseshoe bats look for a cave or mine with constant temperature 7-10 C. In summer, horseshoe bats sleep under the roofs of barns, on bell towers and in storage facilities. IN temperate climate animals winter in deep, ice-free and fairly humid caves. When a horseshoe bat hibernates, its body temperature drops and its heart rate slows, but when alarmed, it can wake up easily.

Reproduction. Adult animals do not reproduce annually, and females become sexually mature only from 2-3 years. Therefore, with intensive destruction of places suitable for their habitat, the number of the species can quickly decrease.
Mating occurs in the fall and for the winter. The timing of pregnancy depends on air temperature - the higher the temperature, the faster the embryo develops. Therefore, pregnant females form brood colonies.
Adult male horseshoe bats visit colonies to find a female that is ready to mate. Only one baby is born. Newborns are blind and naked.
The cubs grow quickly. At the age of 22 days they can already fly. At the age of 30-40 days they feed themselves and can go on long migrations.

Relationship with a person. It is humans who are responsible for the fact that the number of horseshoe bats is rapidly declining. Over the past 100 years the population has declined by more than 90%. The main reason for this phenomenon was the destruction of horseshoe bat habitats.
Intensive development of agriculture has led to a reduction in the number of virgin fields and meadows. Horseshoe bats are also at risk of being used in agriculture poisons, especially biocides, that destroy not only insects, but also the bats that feed on them. Therefore, all horseshoe bats are included in the list of endangered species.
Horseshoe bat observations. The horseshoe bat is rarely seen in flight, as it flies out of its hiding place in the dark and returns before dawn. Horseshoe bats are active even on cold nights. You should not look for their shelter, as they do not tolerate noise well. These bats also make sounds that humans can hear. In their colonies, the noise is made by the cubs, who begin to scream loudly as soon as they are left alone.

Did you know… There are about 950 species of bats.
Chiropterans are the most numerous series of mammals, after rodents.
During wintering, the animal takes 10 breaths per minute. Shortly before waking up, the number of breaths increases to 200 per minute.
During flight, the horseshoe bat moves its ears 60 times per second to detect ultrasonic waves.
Lesser horseshoe bat, weighing only 3.6-8 g, is the smallest species of the family.
If you interrupt wintering, the animal will fully wake up in 50 minutes.
The great horseshoe bat is one of the most rare species bats of Central Europe.
Horseshoe bats send 10 ultrasonic signals per second, other types of bats - up to 200 signals.
Characteristic features of horseshoe bats:
Nose: This is the most important organ of the location system. Ultrasound is released through the nose during flight. The direction of sound is changed by moving the nostrils rather than by turning the head.
Method of catching prey: The bat travels long distances in search of food. He searches for insects using a location system. Then it rushes down, chasing prey, makes a trap with its wings and grabs the insect with its mouth.
The nose has characteristic leathery growths. The middle fleshy part is like a horseshoe.

Location. From North Africa, Southern and Western Europe to the Himalayas, Korea and Japan. A related species of horseshoe bat lives in Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Borneo and Japan.
Preservation. Despite protection, in some places this species is threatened with extinction.

Interesting video about great horseshoe bat

Large horseshoe bats have taken root well in Krasnodar region and Dagestan. In addition, they live in Western Europe, North Africa and Japan. Within their range, the animals inhabit desert areas confined to low mountains, foothills and settlements, deciduous forests, as well as various cultivated landscapes. They usually settle in shelters suitable for life: crevices in rocks, caves, dungeons, grottoes, gullies in river cliffs, in the attics of houses and other human buildings. Very often, horseshoe bats share these secluded places with other species of bats.

IN summer period mice live mostly alone or in small groups, leading night look life, and rest during the day. During rest, the animals hang head down, wrapping themselves in wings, like a cloak, and with the help of tenacious claws they firmly hold on to the support. At dusk, large horseshoe bats fly out to hunt. They hunt low from the ground, near their shelters. The basis of their diet is made up of nocturnal insects - these are various types of cutworms, butterflies, beetles, caddis flies, etc. The animals find food using a sound echo sounder, easily identifying places where large insects accumulate. During feeding, their flight is rather slow, silent and straight.

In October, horseshoe bats go into hibernation. At this time, their body temperature decreases, and in a state of torpor, mice spend several months in secluded places where the air temperature is 7-10°C. Males winter together with young ones, in groups of 5-15 individuals, but separately from females with cubs. If the winter weather is warm enough for insects to appear, the animals interrupt their hibernation with short awakenings and can hunt. Full awakening occurs in April, when the air warms up above 15 degrees.

Mating in greater horseshoe bats occurs in the fall during wintering grounds, but the fertilized egg does not develop until spring. Pregnancy in females lasts almost 3 months. The only cub is born in June or July. On the 7th day of birth, his eyes open, and by 3-4 weeks of life the baby already begins to fly. It becomes independent at 2 months of age, sexually mature only at 3 years of age, but often females do not mate until 5 years of age. The highest mortality rate among young animals is observed in the first year of life, especially during long wintering periods.

In natural natural conditions The lifespan of a large horseshoe bat is about 20 years. It tolerates captivity well, but cases of reproduction in this situation are unknown. And although the animals are not in danger of completely disappearing from the face of the Earth, the great horseshoe bat is listed in the Red Book of Russia as a rare species on the territory of the Russian Federation, with category 3 (protected) status. In Austria and western Germany, these bats are now in danger of extinction. A large number of animals die from pesticide poisoning by feeding on poisoned insects.