Vampire bats may be bloodthirsty, but that doesn’t mean they can’t share a drink with friends.
Fights can erupt among bats over gushing wounds bit into unsuspecting animals.
Bat buds rarely left the roost together, suggesting that they don’t go on tightly coordinated hunts, Carter says. But bats with a history of associating with one another were more likely than strangers to meet up in the field and likely feed together, the researchers found. Rendezvous with friends also lasted longer, on average, than other interactions. That was especially true for bats with many roost buddies.
“These are more or less haphazard encounters,” Carter says. He suspects that the bats mostly forage alone, but when they encounter a friendly bat on a cow, for instance, they’ll feed together instead of fighting or flying off to find other food. Biting a new wound can take 10 to 40 minutes, Carter says, so sharing with a friend could save these bloodthirsty bats time and energy.
Fights can erupt among bats over gushing wounds bit into unsuspecting animals.
Bat buds rarely left the roost together, suggesting that they don’t go on tightly coordinated hunts, Carter says. But bats with a history of associating with one another were more likely than strangers to meet up in the field and likely feed together, the researchers found. Rendezvous with friends also lasted longer, on average, than other interactions. That was especially true for bats with many roost buddies.
“These are more or less haphazard encounters,” Carter says. He suspects that the bats mostly forage alone, but when they encounter a friendly bat on a cow, for instance, they’ll feed together instead of fighting or flying off to find other food. Biting a new wound can take 10 to 40 minutes, Carter says, so sharing with a friend could save these bloodthirsty bats time and energy.
