Megadermatidae Temporal range: Early Oligocene to Recent
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Megaderma spasma | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Chiroptera |
Superfamily: | Rhinolophoidea |
Family: | Megadermatidae H. Allen, 1864 |
Type genus | |
Megaderma Geoffroy, 1810
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Genera | |
Megadermatidae, or false vampire bats, are a family of bats found from central Africa, eastwards through southern Asia, and into Australia. They are relatively large bats, ranging from 6.5 cm to 14 cm in head-body length. They have large eyes, very large ears and a prominent nose-leaf. They have a wide membrane between the hind legs, or uropatagium, but no tail. Many species are a drab brown in color, but some are white, bluish-grey or even olive-green, helping to camouflage them against their preferred roosting environments.
They are primarily insectivorous, but will also eat a wide range of small vertebrates.[1]