Where does the experssion as blind as a bat come from?
American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms: blind as a bat Quite blind; also, unaware. For example, Without my glasses I'm blind as a bat, or I had no idea they wanted me to take over his job; I was blind as a bat. This simile, based on the erroneous idea that the bat's erratic flight means it cannot see properly, has survived even though it is now known that bats have a sophisticated built-in sonar system. [Late 1500s] http://www.answers.com/topic/blind-as-a-... http://www.goenglish.com/asblindasabat.a... http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/blin...
Rabies question?
Get yourself to the doctor, ASAP! Emergency Room, if necessary. You don't want to take a chance on a disease which is almost always fatal, if left untreated. Where is the cat's body? If the body can be tested for rabies, it could save you a lot of hassle. EDIT: Two thumbs down? Am I overreacting?
Why is there so little variety among the flying mammal species vs birds (from an evolutionary perspective)?
There are on the order of 1100 species of bats; that's hardly a handful, although it's much less than the 10000 species of living birds.Neither are bats all very much alike. They range in size from the 2 g bumblebee bat to 1.2 kg giant flying foxes with a wingspan of almost 2 m. Most eat insects, but some eat fruits, fish, nectar, or even other bats. Most but not all use echolocation, and some have developed a complicated noseleaf.Here is a sense of some of the diversity within bats:White bat, Ectophylla albaBumblebee bat, Craseonycteris thonglongyaiGiant flying fox, AcerodonNaked bat, Cheiromeles torquatusFishing bat, Noctilio leporinusPlus about 1095 species not shown.Still, bats haven't entered a lot of niches that birds have. There are no flightless or marine bats, for example. Although some bats are migratory, they don't migrate over distances as huge as some birds do.I'm not sure what the reason for that is, but I can offer some possibilities. There may be more explanations in the scientific literature—I haven't searched exhaustively. One is that birds just got there first: they started flying at least around 150 million years ago (Archaeopteryx), and bats appeared only about 50 million years ago (e.g., Icaronycteris). On the other hand, pterosaurs appeared well before birds (by 230 million years ago), but by the time the Chicxulub asteroid wiped out the last pterosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous (65 million years ago), birds were already far more diverse. Still, maybe we should just give bats some time.Another range of explanations comes from the evolutionary constrains of the two groups: maybe something in bat anatomy makes them unsuited for some niches. Perhaps bat wings are more fragile than bird wings. Bird legs are pretty well suited for walking around; bat legs (with wings attached to them) not so much. A very recent discovery provides an interesting perspective here: Yi qi, a dinosaur closely related to birds, is reconstructed to have had a bat-like wing membrane. Evidently, that wing design was outcompeted by the feathery wings of real birds.
HELP ME T'HERES A BAT IN MY HOUSE?
First thing is first. It is a bat, it only eats insects. Second thing, BREATH! Your going to live!!! Third thing, your a little bit bigger than the bat, how do you think it feels? And forth, if you really want to catch the poor frightened thing, you better get control of yourself. I use a large brown paper bag. Just wait until it is hanging on the wall and put the bag over it, they usually fly right into it, then I close the bag and take it outside. Then I open the bag and let it fly away free. They eat so many mosquitoes and other harmful insects, they are really cute if you look at them up close, they look like a little fox with big ears. Every animal has a purpose and the bat has so many good qualities, it's too bad they are surrounded in such silly wives tales and horror movies.
What are the some of the largest and surprising land animals people have lived alongside of?
Listing some of the giants of animal kingdom. Blue Whale – Largest MAMMAL (27m,109 tonnes) Saltwater Crocodile – Largest REPTILE (6 m, 1000kg) Southern Elephant Seal – Largest CARNIVORA (5.8m, 4000kg ) Chinese Giant Salamander – Largest AMPHIBIAN (4 ft, 30 kg ) Ocean Sunfish – Largest BONY FISH (247 – 1,000 kg) Capybara – Largest RODENT(3.48 to 4.40 ft, 35 to 66 kg) Giraffe – Tallest LAND ANIMAL(4-6m) Green Anaconda – Largest SNAKE (3-4.6m) Japanese Spider Crab – Largest ARTHROPOD:- Size: 3.8m (12 ft) weight: (19 kg). Wandering Albatross – Largest BIRD (3.5m) The Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing – Biggest BUTTERFLY: Wingspan – 1 foot (0.3 m) Whale Shark – Largest FISH (12 m) Red Kangaroo – Largest marsupial Reticulated Python – Longest SNAKE (8m) Fork-tongued Komodo Dragon – Largest LIZARD (3 m) Goliath Frog – Largest FROG (32 cm) Lion’s Mane Jellyfish – Biggest JELLYFISH: (2m) Golden-Crowned Flying Fox – Largest BAT: (1.7 m) Giant Squid – Largest CEPHALOPOD: (18 m) Eastern Gorilla: Largest PRIMATE – Height: 1.9 m Weight: 205 kgHere is a nice video of the same!
Do bats lay eggs or give birth to young ones?
Bats are mammals, not birds, so they do not lay eggs. The female bat becomes pregnant after mating with a male, just as with any other mammal.Female bats are pregnant for 40 days up to 6 months, depending on the size of the bat. They generally give birth to one baby bat (called a pup) at a time. The pup hangs on the mother's stomach and drinks her milk until it is ready to fly on its own. This can take anywhere from 6 weeks to 4 months. Several female bats form subcolonies in which they help care for each other's young.
How can you tell the difference between mouse and bat feces?
I have recently discovered a few turds in my condo. There have been mouse issues here in the past and I had a run in with a bat about 10 days ago. So, I am trying to figure out if I need more mouse traps or if the bat continues to reside here. The turds are very small maybe 1/4 inch long and were found on a window ledge and on top of a dresser. Any and all help is welcomed including suggestions for how to rid my life of either/both of these critters. Thanks!