50 1 



THE AMEUICAX MUSEUM JOUHXAL 



lu llu'se ))ats {La via /nuts aljuiis) the nasal 

 appendages, together with the large ears and the 

 supple wing membranes, are organs of such ex- 

 traordinar.v sense of touch that, even if blinded, 

 the bats would not be hampered in their preda- 

 tory flights. By means of tliese sensory organs, 

 they evidently are able to measure air waves, 

 and thus are effectively warned from flying 

 against obstacles. Tliis bat is far more diurnal 

 than any other we saw, and the curious orange 

 and yellowish green tints of the huge nose leaves 

 and ears add much to its strange beauty. (Lo- 

 cate the eyes and the picture will then take on 

 llie ai>pearance of a face with great ears) 



Tlic <-uri(iusly iiiodiluMi no.'^o leaves, 

 cjirs, and especially the soft wiuji" iiieni- 

 hi'aiies seem to he al)le to measure air 

 Wiiw's. and. even if hliiided, bats will 

 not >trik-c ai:ainst any solid object un- 

 !(•>> they arc t horoui>-hly exhausted. 

 \\ hell (■ha>('d ill closed rooms, thev 

 cMa|)cd hv nari-o\v slit- in windows 

 and (|(i(ir- tiiroiiuh which it seemed 

 I hey could liardly ci'awl. These re- 

 niai'kahle ada|itations hut add inter- 

 est to the fact that hats are the only 

 niaiiimal^ on our |)lanct which have de- 

 Ncloped the power of true flight. On 

 account of this cU'ectiNc locomotion, 

 zoiigeogr.ipher- e\cludc(| them from 

 their c(inclu-i(ins, especially as certain 

 >pecic- wrvc \}r\\rxo(] fo extcnd uni- 

 hii'ndv o\ei- Mui-ope. .\sia, and Africa. 

 (hielly (111 account of our long sojourn 

 in the.-c regions, we were able to prove 

 that, just as with birds of the forest 

 and birds of the plains, about twenty- 

 live In nils are endeinio to the rain for- 

 i'>t ;ind about thirty to the open coun- 

 ti'y. I''ive otb(>rs may occuf everywhere 

 i)ecau.se they follow closely in the wake 

 <d' man and live either in the native 

 plantations or in and about human 

 dwellings. 



Some of the Central African 1)ats 

 are by fai more interesting than 

 their Asiatic relatives, among whicli. 

 however, is the most gigantic of all 

 hat>. the AFalay llying-fo.v. which meas- 

 iii'cs one foot in length and five feet 

 across its fully expanded wings. On 

 the other hand, the largest of African 

 (hiroptera. th(^ hammer-headed bat 

 ( 1/ i/jisii/ntilli us niDiisI rosiis) , measures 

 only ten and a (piarter inches in length 

 and has a wing spread of three feet 

 two inches. These are the strangest of 

 all the hats and the males are abso- 

 lutely unii|ue. not oidy among mammals 

 but among all vertebrates, in one fea- 

 ture at least. The larynx of adult 

 males is almost completely ossified and 

 so tremendously enlarged that it actu- 

 ally fills two thirds of the entire body 

 cavitv, crowdiuii' the heart and luniJ^s 



