76 



THE WING-HANDED ANIMALS. 



semble those of the insect-eating animals, having all 

 .the various kinds in closed rows ; but the number 

 and shape vary greatly. 



Some Pronounced The most pronounced of all the 

 Peculiarities peculiarities is the skin, changing as 

 of Bats. ^ does the whole shape of the body 

 as well as the expression of the face, sometimes 

 giving the latter a really monstrous appearance. The 

 wide open mouth contributes to the repulsiveness ; 

 but the excrescences of the skin on the ears and nose 

 really give the face its uncanny appearance and com- 

 plete its extreme ugliness. 



" No other group of animals," says Blasius, "shows 

 such a development of the skin. I refer not only 

 to the flying membranes but also to the ear and nose. 

 The ears attain in all these families a striking growth. 

 Their length in some kinds is nearly equal to that 

 of the body ; in width some show an extension of 

 both ears into one. In some kinds the parts adjoin- 

 ing the nostrils and the crest of the nose show the 

 most abnormal growth, and the results are faces such 

 as we should be able to find nowhere else in the 

 world. The strange development of the skin in the 

 wings, ear and nose differs from that of all other 

 animals and seems to regulate the movements and 

 mode of living of the Bats, even in details." 



Features A feature of the wings, which has but 

 of a lately been discovered, is a highly 

 Bat's Wings, elastic, or, rather, contractile layer of 

 skin. The outer layer is constantly kept pliable by 

 anointings with an oily liquid, secreted by glands 

 in the animal's face. The structure of the hair in 

 Bats is also remarkable, as each thread presents a 

 screw-like appearance under the microscope. The 

 purpose of this arrangement seems to be the better 

 retention of heat. 



The Senses of the The senses of Wing-handed Ani- 

 Wing-handed mals are excellent, but developed 

 Animals. very differently according to groups. 

 Some organs of sense show strange enlargements 

 and appendages. The sense of taste is probably 

 the least acute ; yet it cannot be called dull, judging 

 from the structure of the tongue, the softness of the 

 lips and the rich supply of nerves in both. Besides, 

 this sense has been experimented on and proved to 

 be acute. If one, for instance, puts a drop of water 

 in the open mouth of a sleeping Bat, it will immedi- 

 ately swallow it ; but if brandy, ink or some other ill- 

 tasting liquid be given, it will cast out the draught. 

 The eye is no less developed. In proportion to the 

 size of the body, it is small, but the pupil is capable 

 of considerable dilation. Some kinds have espe- 

 cially small eyes ; and Koch calls attention to the 

 fact that they are sometimes so hidden behind the 

 hair of the face that they cannot be used for the 

 purpose of seeing. These small-eyed animals are 

 such as one sometimes sees flying about in the day- 

 time, while the real, nocturnal Bats have larger eyes, 

 lying quite free and unobstructed. Yet the eye 

 may be destroyed without damaging its owner to 

 any great extent. The sense of sight is supple- 

 mented greatly by the sense of hearing, of smell 

 and of touch. Bats have frequently been blind- 

 folded by sticking a piece of court-plaster over their 

 eyes ; yet they flew about the room just as usual, 

 avoiding in a dexterous manner obstacles placed in 

 their path, such as strings stretched across the room, 

 etc. The sense of touch may have its seat in the 

 wings ; at least, this is the conclusion that has been 

 reached after long and frequent observations. The 

 senses of smell and hearing are very well developed. 



The nose is perfect in all genuine Bats ; for not only 

 can the nostrils be dilated, narrowed or entirely 

 closed by special muscles, but the animals also pos- 

 sess large, leaf-like appendages, whose only use can 

 be that of increasing the sense of smell. The ear, 

 perfected in a similar manner, consists of a large 

 shell, often extending to the corner of the mouth, 

 provided with leaf-like expansions and extremely 

 mobile. There is besides, a large flap, which may 

 vary in shape, and which, if a noise be too loud, may 

 be closed and thus spare its owner the pain of list- 

 ening ; while in very slight noises it serves to catch 

 and increase the volume of the sound waves. It is 

 doubtless true that the Bat may hear insects fly 

 within a limited area, and that it is guided, to some 

 extent, by the ear in its flight. If one cuts the leaf- 

 like appendages off, or the lobes or ear-flaps, the 

 Bat gets confused and knocks against obstacles. 



The The intellect of the Bats is by no- 



Intelligence means as low as is commonly supposed, 

 of Bats. anc j the creature gives the lie to the 

 stupid expression of its face. The brain is large and 

 has some convolutions, which alone indicates that its 

 intelligence cannot be small. All Bats are distin- 

 guished by a rather high degree of memory and 

 some by the presence of reasoning powers. 



Kolenati tells us that a Bat, hunting in an avenue 

 of linden trees, spared a female Butterfly, because 

 she attracted a great many males of her kind, thus 

 proving a lure for the game. If one tries to angle 

 for Bats by using Butterflies on hooks, his labor is 

 lost. They will approach and look at the hovering 

 insect, but soon discover the fine tackle, and leave 

 the temptation untouched, even if food is very 

 scarce and they are hungry. It has been demon- 

 strated frequently that Bats may be tamed and be- 

 come strongly attached to their masters. A number 

 of naturalists have trained their pets to take food 

 from their hands or search for it in a glass. My 

 brother tamed a Long-eared Bat to such a degree 

 that it followed him all over the house, and when 

 he offered it a Fly, it instantly hastened to sit in 

 his hand and take the morsel. The larger Bats are 

 really possessed of amiable, social qualities ; they 

 become very tame and in many ways prove them- 

 selves very sensible. 



About Blasius says : " The capacity for, and the 



the way special manner of, flying depends on the 

 Bats Fly. shape of the wings. Whoever has studied 

 Bats in nature, must have observed how the rapidity 

 and agility of certain species correspond to the 

 shapes of their wings. Those that have these mem- 

 bers longest and slenderest fly highest and bold- 

 est ; they can make the most varied and often sud- 

 den turnings, and are so confident that they will 

 brave storms and winds. As a rule the wing in fly- 

 ing describes but a small, acute angle, it being only 

 at sudden turns that it takes a wider scope, while 

 the flight is manifold and rapid with small wing- 

 movements and apparently little exertion. 



"The Vespertilio and Rhinolophus are the poorest 

 flyers of all the Bats. Comparing them with others, 

 it will be found that their wings arc the broadest and 

 shortest ; they describe a large, and in most cases, 

 obtuse angle. Their flight is fluttering, slow and un- 

 certain. Generally they fly low and in a straight 

 direction, without quick turns or side-movements. 

 Some seem to fairly skim the ground or water, fly- 

 ing but a few inches above it. 



" It is not difficult to guess the genus from the 

 height and manner of flight and the size of the 



