Eastern pipistrelle
The Tricolored bat (Perimyotis subflavus) is a species of microbat native to eastern North America. Its common name "tricolored bat" derives from the coloration of the hairs on its back, which have three distinct color bands. It is the smallest bat species in the eastern and midwestern US. The Tricolored bat has a relatively long lifespan and can live nearly fifteen years.
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NocturnalNocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal",...
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InsectivoresAn insectivore is a carnivorous plant or animal that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of e...
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CarnivoreA carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of a...
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ViviparousAmong animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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TorporTorpor is a state of decreased physiological activity in an animal, usually marked by a reduced body temperature and metabolic rate. Torpor enables...
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ArborealArboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some anima...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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PredatorPredators are animals that kill and eat other organisms, their prey. Predators may actively search for or pursue prey or wait for it, often conceal...
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ColonialColonial animals live in large aggregations composed of two or more conspecific individuals in close association with or connected to, one another....
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HibernatingHibernation is a state of minimal activity and metabolic depression undergone by some animal species. Hibernation is a seasonal heterothermy charac...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe Tricolored bat has blond fur that is distinctly tricolored on its back. Individual hairs are tricolored: dark gray at the base, buffy (yellowish brown) in the middle, and brown or reddish brown at the tip. Its forearms are reddish, contrasting sharply with the black membranes of its wings.
Tricolored bats are found throughout eastern North America, with the southern extent of their range in Central America and the northern extent in southern Canada. They inhabit open woods near the edges of water, preferring such trees as oak, maple, eastern cottonwood, and American tulip tree. In summer these bats usually roost in trees, caves, rock crevices, and buildings, but during the winter, they hibernate in caves, mines, and deep crevices.
During the summer, female Tricolored bats roost alone or in maternity colonies of up to 30 individuals. Males are solitary and do not form colonies. In Nova Scotia, researchers discovered nearly one hundred roosts of this species, finding that all sampled individuals were roosting not in tree foliage, but rather in a species of beard lichen. This was thought to be the first documentation of a bat using beard lichen as a roosting substrate. With the start of the cold weather, Tricolored bats retreat for hibernation. During hibernation, males lose an average of 2.65 g (0.093 oz), while females lose an average of 2.5 g (0.088 oz). These bats forage at night with slow, erratic flight in areas near water or forest edges. They are one of the first bat species to begin foraging each night. They navigate and search for prey via echolocation (sonar). Their echolocation calls are at a high frequency; visual renderings of the calls show a distinctive hook-shaped call profile, with the lowest frequencies (bottom of the hook shape) at 42 kHz.
Tricolored bats are carnivores (insectivores). They feed on small insects of 4-10 mm (0.16-0.39 in) in length. They favor mosquitoes, beetles, ants, moths, and cicadas.
Tricolored bats breed in the autumn before hibernation and females delay implantation until the spring. Gestation (pregnancy) lasts for about 44 days, with females giving birth in June or July. The litter size is typically 2 pups. At birth, the young lack fur, and their eyes are closed. The mother leaves her offspring behind at the roost while she forages at night. The pups develop rapidly, beginning to fly at 3 weeks old, and by 4 weeks old, they are foraging for themselves. Young Tricolored bats become reproductively mature and start to breed in their second autumn.
The Tricolored bat has experienced severe population decline as a result of the fungal disease white-nose syndrome, which arrived in the US in 2006, with losses of 70% and greater detected in multiple US states. The disease kills bats by colonizing their skin during the winter, causing them to arouse from torpor and burn through their limited fat reserves.
The IUCN Red List and other sources don’t provide the number of the Tricolored bat total population size. Currently, this species is classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List, and its numbers today are decreasing.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...