62 
ORDERS OF MAMMALS— BATS 
THE FAMILY OF LEAF-NOSED BATS. 
PhyUostomatidae. 
The members of this Family bear on their 
noses thin leaves of naked skin that stand erect 
behind, or partly around, the nostrils. These 
wonderful nose-leaves are pear-shaped, heart- 
shaped, wedge-like, and of many other forms. 
The ears are large, or very large ; the wing mem- 
CALIFORNIA LEAF-NOSED BAT. 
(After Harrison Allen.) 
brane reaches down to the foot ; the tail is long, 
and sometimes extends a short distance beyond 
the interfemoral membrane. On the whole, the 
bats of this Family form an astonishing exhibit 
of facial oddities. All save a few species are 
confined to South America. 
The California Leaf-Nosed Bat 1 may be 
taken as a very modest example, because it bears 
what is really a very simple form of nose-leaf. 
It is found in southern California and Mexico, 
and its pelage is very light-colored. 
The most remarkable of all bat faces is that 
of a small, brown-colored West Indian species 
known as Blainville’s Bat . 2 As a sport of Nat- 
ure it stands fairly unrivalled, and shows what 
is possible in the fashioning of skin into orna- 
mental forms. The ears are large and of most 
fantastic form, the chin is bedecked with a high- 
ly convoluted bib of skin, and the eyes and nos- 
trils are almost lost amid the leaves and tuber- 
cles which cover the muzzle. As a whole, the 
appearance of the face of this bat suggests a high- 
ly complicated flower, like a double pansy. The 
skull is only five-eighths of an inch in length. 
1 O-top'ter-us cal-i-for'ni-cus. 
2 Mor'moops blain'vill-ii. 
This species is quite uncommon, and practically 
nothing is known of its habits. 
In fashioning the noses and ears of bats, Nat- 
ure has done some very odd and curious work. 
The flowers of orchids are not more oddly fash- 
ioned than the heads and faces of some species. 
Let it not be supposed, however, that these 
queer facial appendages and long ears of the 
leaf-nosed bats are purely ornamental. Dr. 
George E. Dobson, one of the greatest authori- 
ties on bats, has pointed out two very curious 
facts. (1) The bats with small ears and no nose- 
leaves fly most in the early twilight; and many, 
such as the fruit-bats, fly in the daytime. (2) 
The long-eared and leaf-nosed bats prefer dark- 
ness, and seek their food only at night. 
Let us see if we can find a reason for this. 
A cruel investigator of the eighteenth century, 
named Spallanzani, once destroyed the eye- 
sight of several bats, then suspended many silken 
threads from the ceiling of a room, and liberated 
the creatures. Although totally blind, the bats 
flew to and fro between the threads, without 
once striking them, and were equally successful 
in avoiding branches of trees that were intro- 
duced. It now seems certain that some bats 
possess a sixth sense, of which at present we know 
nothing, by which they are able to fly in total 
darkness, and avoid even the smallest obstruc- 
tions. 
It seems quite probable that the long ears and 
nose-leaves of the night-going bats aid their 
owners in guiding their flight; but the precise 
manner in which it is done remains to be dis- 
covered. 
The True Vam- 
pire Bats. — By 
this name we seek 
to distinguish the 
bats which actual- 
ly suck the blood 
of living creatures, 
from the so-called 
vampires which 
live on fruit. In 
South America 
there are five spe- 
cies of true vam- 
pires, three of 
which are known 
as the javelin 
blainville’s flower-nosed 
BAT. 
(After Peters.) 
