Common tent-making Bat
Uroderma bilobatum
- Class
- Mammal
- Rarity
- Rare
- Observations
- 536
- Most observed in
- 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
- Conservation
- Least Concern
Description
The tent-making bat (Uroderma bilobatum) is an American leaf-nosed bat (Phyllostomidae) found in lowland forests of Central and South America. This medium-sized bat has a gray coat with a pale white stripe running down the middle of the back. Its face is characterized by a fleshy nose-leaf and four white stripes. Primarily a frugivore, it may supplement its diet with insects, flower parts, pollen, and nectar. Its common name comes from its behavior of constructing tents out of large, fan-shaped leaves. These roosts provide excellent protection from the tropical rains, and a single tent roost may house several bats at once. This bat is quite common in its geographic range; hence, its conservation status is listed as Least Concern.
Summary adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tent-making bat”.