The velvety free-tailed bat (''Molossus molossus'') is a species of

bat Bats are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera (). With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most birds, flying with their very long spread-out ...

found in

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

, Central, and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

and the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

Physical description

The velvety free-tailed bat is a medium-sized bat, with a length of and with a wingspan of . This species is brown in color; however, when seen flying around at dusk, it will appear to be black. The tail of the velvety free-tailed bat is long and extends beyond the tail membrane. Its ears are large and round.

Feeding

The velvety free-tailed bat forages in open areas, above tree canopies, around forest edges, and around streams and ponds. Its diet includes moths, beetles, and flying ants. It is commonly seen at dusk, where it will fly solo, catching insects in the air.

Distribution and habitat

It occurs in the Americas from

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

north to

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

and

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

and also the

Florida Keys The Florida Keys are a coral island, coral cay archipelago off the southern coast of Florida, forming the southernmost part of the continental United States. They begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami a ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It is very common in the Caribbean. A velvety free-tailed bat has been observed being killed by a giant centipede (''

Scolopendra viridicornis ''Scolopendra viridicornis'' is a species of centipede in the family Scolopendridae which can be found within the Amazon rainforest, the type locality being in Brazil. Due to the geographic distribution of this species it is known as the Brazili ...

'') in the Amazon. The lone bat had been roosting inside a man-made wooden structure in

Cristalino State Park The Cristalino State Park () is a state park in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil. Location The Cristalino State Park is in the municipalities of Alta Floresta and Novo Mundo in the extreme north of Mato Grosso, between the Teles Pires river and ...

before the centipede grabbed it with its legs and injected venom into its neck. This observation is notable due to the rarity of centipede predation on bats.

References

* ''Stokes Beginner's Guide to Bats'' by Kim Williams, Rob Mies Donald and Lillian Stokes {{Taxonbar, from=Q1832759 Molossus (bat) Mammals of Colombia Bats of Central America Mammals of the Dominican Republic Mammals of Haiti Mammals of Puerto Rico