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06 ■ Vampire bats land a distance away from sleeping prey, and then scuttle up close. After biting into a soft part of the skin, such as an ear, they lap up the blood like a cat drinking milk.

uo: The blossom bat

measures just 3 in (7.5 cm) It has a super long tongue for drinking nectar from flowers. Snakes and other sneaky predators hide in fruit trees and wait for the bats to come to them.

09 ■ Named for their doglike

muzzles, there are many species of flying fox, including this greater musky fruit bat. It locates figs and other fruits by sight and smell, then harvests them with its feet.

07 ■ Many bats prefer

to roost in caves and old buildings. However flying foxes and fruit bats often roost out in the open. They may hang from tree branches in “camps” of up to 200,000 bats. Egyptian fruit bats have even been known to roost in ancient pyramids!

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10 ■ As their front limbs are wings, bats have no fingers to grip with. That’s why they tend to rest by hanging upside down, like this flying fox, holding on with the long, curved claws of their feet.

Nocturnal animals

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