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LONG-EARED BAT. 
er ; and the fur lias less of the reddish tinge ; but 
what immediately distinguishes it as a species^ is 
the very great size of the ears, which are more 
than an inch long and of a very considerable 
width : they are slightly rounded at the tips, and 
are furnished internally, as in most others of this 
genus, with a kind of secondary auricle or inter- 
nal flap^ so placed as to serve by way of a valve 
or guard to the auditory passage. Linnjeus, 
even in the twelfth edition of the Systema Naturas, 
seems to entertain a doubt Avhether this species 
be really distinct from the former, or merely a 
sexual difference. 
This and the former are the two most common 
species in this country ; and are those A\^hich we so 
often see fluttering about in the evenings of sum- 
mer and autumn; frequently uttering a sharp, 
stridulous note or scream during their flight;, and 
pursuing the various kinds of insects on which 
they feed ; particularly moths. They are some- 
times taken by throwing up the heads of burdock 
whitened with flour; which the Bats, either mis- 
taking for some insect, or casually dashing against, 
are caught by the hooked prickles and brought to 
the ground. 
The Bat is capable, like the Mouse, of being 
tamed to a certain degree ; and we are assured by 
Mr. White, in his Natural History of Selborne, 
that he was much amused in the summer of the 
year 1766 with the sight of a tame Bat. It 
would take flies out of a person's hand. If you 
gave it any thing to eat, it brought its wings 
