It’s why people frequently misjudge bat size when they see them flying around. The number of times I’ve had people tell me they saw a huge, fruit bat in like - New Jersey. None of those in North America lol
Wingspans are deceptive! Small bats (like the little brown bat which weighs between 6 and 10 grams, or the weight one 1 AAA battery) have a wingspan of between 8-12 inches
But Chuckwalla's tail does! Locked tight in the Bat's jaws, the severed tail continuing to twitch and wriggle. Bat takes off in search of a nice perch from which to enjoy his meal, thus exiting the field of battle. #2026MMM #2026mmm
Chuckwalla whips his tail in agitation. Circling back down, Bat extends its neck and bites down hard on the scaley tail, pulling as its tries to continuing flying forward. Chuckwalla, firmly wedged in his crevice, doesn't budge. #2026MMM #2026mmm
Inside his rock crevice, Chuckwalla begins a rhymthic gulping as he inflates his lungs to nearly 4x time their regular capacity (Deban et al 1994). His sides expand, tightly locking him in place among the rocks. #2026MMM #2026mmm
Ears twitching, the Bat hones in on the scrape of claws over rocks, its hearing highly specialized for lower-frequency sounds made by potential prey (Bruns et al 1989). Bats swoops low over the exposed tail of the Chuckwalla. #2026MMM #2026mmm
Suddenly, our Bat is transported by #MMMMagic to the Sonoran desert skies, overlooking our basking Chuckwalla. Alert to movement of potentially airborne predators, Chuckwalla launches himself head-first into a nearby rocky crevice. #2026MMM #2026mmm
Meanwhile, in Soberania National Park in Panama, our Fringe-lipped Bat has left on its nightly hunt for food. March is the dry season, which means fewer frogs, but Bat isn't too picky so he's listening for insects and other small vertebrates like anoles (Jones et al 2020). #2026MMM #2026mmm
Illustration of chuckwalla basking positions, drawn from the side. First is with all four feet planted, second is from underneath with back legs spread flat, third is from the side with bakc legs out to side and fourth is front legs under the body and back legs 'splooted' towards the tail
Chuckwalla has only recently emerged from brumation (the reptile version of hibernation) & is enjoying the warm, mid-80s weather. His back legs are stretched behind him in a 'sploot' - better for temperature regulation (Berry 1974), though it makes him more vulnerable to predators. #2026MMM #2026mmm
Three saquaro cactus against a desert landscape background, with blue, purple and pink sunset in the background
The sun is just beginning to set in Saguaro National Park near Tucson, AZ. Our Chuckwalla has been enjoying the last of the afternoon sunshine before the shadows being to creep over his rocky perch. #2026MMM #2026mmm
Three panel image. First is of the fringe-lipped bat with mouth open, facing camera. Second is bat hanging downwards holding a frog in its mouth. The frog has a pale belly with dark spots. Third is a tungara frog in a puddle of water, with the throat sac fully extended
Most well known for hunting frogs, fringe-lipped bats have excellent hearing - they listen both for the sound of calling male frogs AND the echoes of the water ripples produced as the result of frogs inflating their vocal sacs (Halfwerk et al 2014). #2026MMM #2026mmm
Close up of the fringe-lipped bat's mouth and nose leaf. The chin is pink and covered in greyish fleshy nubs. The fur and nose leaf are grey.
Fringe-lipped bats are medium sized bats with 13-15 inch wingspans, and long, woolly fur (Cramer et al 2001). They are named for the curious but stylish fleshy projections on their lips and chin #2026MMM #2026mmm
Achoo! Chuckwallas have a special talent - they sneeze salt! Primarily herbivorous but rarely drinking water, chuckwallas have special glands in their noses that filter excess salt while preserving water (Shuttleworth et al 1987). #2026MMM #2026mmm
A large, stout lizard weighing up to 2 pounds (~ 4 stoats), the Common Chuckwalla is common to dry, rocky landscapes of the Mojave and Sonoran deserts #2026MMM #2026mmm
Up next: #5 seed Common Chuckwalla (Sauromalus ater) vs #12-seed Fringe-lipped Bat (Trachops cirrhosus) #2026MMM #2026mmm
#JusticeForPekapeka (or at least a bath!)
A black coffin frame holding a grayscale portrait of a small furry bat looking up
#2026MMM #ExtinctionDivision #TeamNewZealandGreaterShortTailedBat #TeamPekapeka Art by Valeria Pellicer @veppart.bsky.social
Wild Dromedary Camel OUTLASTS NZ Greater Short-Tailed Bat!! #2026MMM
Sizing up our Camel combatant, the rival male retreats, leaving #2026MMM Combatant Camel DOUBLY victorious at the edge of the oasis. #2026MMM
Now soaked, Bat pulls free from the rat's paws. With an awkward push into the ground, Bat launches itself into the air and towards the nearby cliffs, vacating the field of battle as tiny drips of pee sprinkle down on the sand. #2026MMM
A harsh stream of urine sprays down onto the Bat and rat as Camel wets his tail and flaps it onto his back in display (Kohler-Rollefson 1991). Camel takes a step towards the rival camel. #2026MMM
Not to be dissuaded from its meal, the rat presses the Bat into the sand with its forelegs. It goes to take the killing bite when...BLECH! #2026MMM
Our male Camel combatant stands, hindlegs spread wide. It is rutting season and he has just spotted a possible RIVAL male a few meters away. Head lowering, lifting and bending backwards, Camel grinds his teeth as saliva drips onto the sand (Kohler-Rollefson 1991) #2026MMM
Life-size camel, auroch and gazelle rock carvings in the cliffs of the Nefud desert. They curve along mulitple rows of the cliffside.
Paleoreconstruction of a desert lake near cliffs some 12000 years ago. The lake is crescent shaped, curving arouund the edge of sandy cliffs.
...Dropping the tangled Bat/rat in the Nefud desert, 12,000 years ago! A bright sun reflects off the animal carvings on the desert cliffs and the surface of the nearby watering hole. Grunts, hums and snuffles of camels fill the air #2026MMM.
Just as Bat scuttles along the edge of a nearby bush, a RAT lunges out, teeth bared! Bat spreads its wings in an attempt to take flight when an MMM portal opens up... #2026MMM
Landscape images of Big South Cape Island taken in 1931 (top) and 2012 (bottom), showing forested cliff side and ocean water.
We start tonight on Big South Cape Island, NZ in 1965. Dark has fallen and our Bat has just landed on the soft ground. Using a "scuttling walk" unique to New Zealand bats (Hand et al 2009), it searches for grubs among fallen leaves #2026MMM
The incursion of rats also led to attempts at several seabird translocations. At the time, the bat was thought to be the same species as the still existing lesser short-tailed bat, so translocations were never attempted (Bell et al 2016). #2026MMM
