THE GREATER HORSESHOE BAT 245 



from the first to suspect that this bat may habitually take some 

 at least of its prey while at rest. 



The habits of the Greater Horseshoe, as observed by Mr 

 Coward, in captivity, were very instructive. "On one occasion 

 a bat dropped near a beetle which had buzzed, for undoubtedly 

 the buzzing of a beetle at once attracted the bat's attention ; 

 the bat moved its head to and fro, the lower edge of the horse- 

 shoe touching the floor. The beetle walked a few inches away, 

 and then again attempted to fly ; instantly the bat followed it 

 in a series of little jumps, really short flights of a few inches, 

 and after two or three jumps reached and fell upon the beetle, 

 which it at once thrust into its interbrachial membrane. 

 Directly it had secured the beetle it rose from the floor, flew 

 to a customary perch and, there hanging, consumed it. In the 

 cage the method was similar ; the bat dropped on to the floor 

 of the cage, lying with extended wings, and either feeling or 

 smelling round — at least that is what the action suggested — 

 until it found a beetle ; directly one was secured, it sprang up, 

 turned in the air, and clutched the bar of wood, only twenty 

 inches above it, with its feet. The beetle was then pushed into 

 the wing as usual, and the head and perhaps other fragments 

 dropped. This, then, is evidently the way in which flightless 

 beetles and spiders are caught, and possibly coprophagous 

 beetles may be thus picked up when they are crawling over 

 dung. 



"This is, however, not the only way in which the Greater 

 Horseshoe secures its food ; it can and does catch insects on 

 the wing. G. typhoeiis is a beetle which flies during mild 

 weather in winter, and when I released a dozen beetles in my 

 room in the evening, two or three would quickly attempt to fly. 

 It was when this occurred that I felt certain that the bats hunt 

 and locate their prey mainly by means of their acute hearing. 

 The deep booming buzz of the flying beetle at once roused the 



Scotosia dubitata of LinniEus, Gonoptera libatrix of Linnaeus, Triphccna orbona of 

 Fabricius, T. promiba of Linnteus, and Xylophasia polyodon of LinricCus. Several 

 Diptera, including Miiscidce apparently of the genus Liiciliaj a wasp-like Hyvicrt- 

 opteron, and caddis-flies. Numerous pellets of excrement were carefully examined for 

 Coward by R. Newstead, to whose identification many of these names are due. 

 No doubt many other insects might be added, and the moths Triphana fimbria and 

 Agrotis saucia were identified by J. E. Harting for Macpherson {loc. cit.). 



