Are Bats Reptiles?

Bats are not reptiles, they are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera. Mammals are a clade of warm blooded animals that have hair or fur, three middle ear bones, mammary glands in females, and a neocortex (region of the brain). They also give birth to live young. Bats have forelimbs that form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight.

Reptiles on the other hand are cold blooded creatures that often have scules, horny plates, or scales and reproduce by laying eggs that later hatch. Examples of reptiles include snakes, turtles, lizards, crocodiles, alligators, etc.

Are Bats Lizards?

Bats are not lizards. Bats are flying mammals, while lizards are reptiles. Mammals are warm blooded creatures that have fur or hair on their bodies and give birth to live young. While most reptiles on the other hand, such as the lizard, are cold blooded creatures that often have scales and lay eggs when they reproduce.

Ironically enough some species of bats will be found eating lizards, while some species of lizards might also be found eating bats. It should be noted however, that most bats typically have a diet consisting mainly of insects and/or fruit. While some species of bats such as the vampire bat drink the blood of other mammals.

Are Bats Insects?

Bats are not insects, they are mammals, however similar to insects they do fly. Ironically enough, a bat’s main source of food are insects such as moths, flies, mosquito’s, etc. In fact, they can eat up to half of their body weight in insects, making them the main predator for insects.

A bat’s wings are supported by elongated finger bones, making it easy for them to soar through the night sky. Like most mammals, bats give birth to live young and have fur on their bodies which helps them control their body temperature. In addition to eating insects, some species of bats eat fruits, while others drink the blood of other warm blooded animals.

Are Bats Keystone Species?

Bats are an essential, beneficial part of the ecosystem. In fact, the increasing deaths of the bat population are a major cause for concern, as they will cause a considerable ecological ripple effect, with potentially far-reaching consequences.

These flying creatures play critical roles in insect control, plant pollination, seed dissemination, and cave ecosystems. In addition, they are food for other animals such as the hawk, raccoon, skunk, and owl.

Consuming over half of their body weight in insects each night, bats are the major predator of night flying insects. If it weren’t for bats eating thousands of tons of insects in the United States each night there would be an increase in insect population, resulting in damage to crops and forests, and a increase in pesticide applications.

Many species of bats such as the cave-roosting bat are considered a keystone species because their waste (guano) provides vital nutrients for cave ecosystems, and is often the basis of a cave’s food chain. Bat guano is used by micro-organisms and invertebrates which become food for fish, frogs, salamanders, and other larger animals.

In addition, bats also play a significant role in science and medicine. Research conducted on bats has enabled advancements in sonar, vaccine development, artificial insemination, blood coagulation and much more.

Are Bats Good For The Environment?

Not only can these winged creatures of the night eat up to their full body weight in insects, some species are also critical in pollinating fruits and seeds, and their waste is great fertilizer, thus making them very beneficial to the environment.

Despite what you may have heard, bats typically do not carry disease and are actually very beneficial. Bat rabies actually only accounts for approximately one human death per year in the United States. Unfortunately, despite their positive role in pollinating and killing off insects, over 40% of bats are now endangered or threatened due to destruction of habitat and being killed off by fearful humans.

Are Bats Endothermic Or Ectothermic?

Bats are mammals and since mammals maintain their body’s internal environment on their own, they are by default, endothermic creatures. Other endotherms include other mammals, birds, some fish, insects, and even some plants. These creatures are capable of generating sufficient amounts of heat energy to maintain a high core temperatures of 37 to 40 degrees Celsius.

To maintain a constant body temperature, endotherms must balance heat loss with heat production. Heat loss is minimilized in most mammals by having a thick coat of fur or a thick layer of fat beneath the skin. Heat loss on the other hand occurs when an animal sweats, pants, or seeks shelter in cooler environments.

Ectothermic creatures on the other hand such as reptiles, require an external source to assist in the maintenance of their internal environment. Many ectotherms are able to regulate their body temperatures behaviorally, and can be found doing so by moving in and out of sunlight.

What Are Cats’ Whiskers Used For?

A cat’s whiskers (also known as tactile hairs or vibrissae) are long, thick, flexible hairs located on his or her face. These hairs are located in horizontal rows on the whisker pad (the puffy area between the top corners of the cat’s mouth and the outer edges or his or her nose). Whiskers, much like hair and nails, fall out and are replaced. However a cat’s whiskers are a lot different from the other hair on a cat’s body. Not only are they two to three times thicker than the cat’s hair, they are also rooted very deep in his or her face, in an area rich in nerves and blood vessels.

Cat’s also have shorter whiskers above their eyebrows, on their chin, and on the back of their front legs. A cat’s facial whiskers are used for navigation, measuring an opening, and mood indication. Cats use their whiskers to feel their way around. In fact, a cat’s whiskers are so sensitive that they can detect the slightest directional change in a breeze. This makes it easy for cat’s to walk around at night without bumping into anything. The air currents in a room change depending on where things are located.

When a cat is happy or content his or her whiskers will be more relaxed and pushed forward. This goes for when they are feeling curious as well. However, when your feline companion is feeling angry or defensive don’t be too surprised if their whiskers are pulled back.

Last but not least, the primary use of a feline’s whiskers are to help them judge whether or not they can fit through an opening. In fact, a cat’s whiskers are roughly as wide as their body. The tips of the whiskers are sensitive to pressure. This is why you will most likely see your cat stick his head in and out of an opening before attempting to climb into it. By doing this, he is judging the width of the opening and determining whether or not he can fit into it. In addition, unlike humans, cats do not have a true collar bone which allows them to twist and turn, and fit into very narrow openings.

It is very important that you never cut or trim a cat’s whiskers as it can leave them disoriented, and make it difficult for them to accurately judge distances and keep their balance.

How Long Is A Cat’s Gestation Period?

For mammals the gestation period is the time in which a fetus develops, beginning with fertilization and ending at birth. Cat gestation periods are typically defined as “the number of days between a successful mating and the birth of the fully developed kittens”. A cat’s gestation period is somewhere between 61 and 69 days, with an average of 63 to 66 days. It should be noted however, that this number can vary. Sometimes it might be much shorter, and other times much longer. It just depends on the cat.

The reason for the huge variation in these figures is due to the nature of the feline reproductive cycle. Female cats are “induced ovulators”, meaning that they require the mating stimulus of a male cat if they are to ovulate their ova (eggs) into their uterine tract for fertilization. Usually several matings are required in order for this to happen (8-12 copulations is common).

Cats can found mating often over a period of days before the female becomes stimulated enough to ovulate her eggs. It is very uncommon for a single mating between male and female cats to result in successful ovulation. Technically speaking, less than half of female cats ovulate after a single copulation. Once enough mating stimulus has been provided, it usually takes a female cat 24-52 hours after the successful mating to release the eggs into the uterus tract.

Since a cat’s gestation period is defined using the starting point of a successful mating, and it often requires several matings over several days in order to ovulate and become pregnant, confusion on how long a cat’s gestation period is often comes into play. Cat breeders or pet owners are unsure as to which of the witnessed matings is the successful one, and therefore are unsure where to start the count from.

Are Foxes Killed For Fur?

Unfortunately foxes usually only live for one or two years in captivity due to their sole predators, humans. However, foxes that are left alone have been known to survive up to nine years. Many foxes are raised on factory farms and are stuffed into tiny, filthy, wire cages where they live for a few years in poor conditions until they are later killed to make products like clothing.

Other foxes living in the wild are often caught in steel trap jaws that crush their legs. Trappers arrive and take them to the factory farms to kill them to make into fur, or beat them to death right there on the spot. Fox fur is often found on coats, cuffs, collars, trim, etc. As if this isn’t bad enough, others are often hunted by hunting dogs for sport. The dogs chase them up a tree and then tear them apart once they get a hold of them.

Where Are Cats Kidneys Located?

Cats, just like humans have 2 kidneys. A cat’s kidneys are relatively small and bean shaped, and they are located on each side of the cat behind his or her rib cage. A cat’s kidneys play a very important role. The kidneys help control a cat’s blood pressure and also produce a variety of required hormones and enzymes, contribute to the production of red blood cells, and control the fluid in a cat’s bloodstream.

The kidney’s most important job, however, is to remove metabolic waste from a cat’s blood. A cat’s kidney tissue contains thousands of tiny filtration units known as nephrons. A cat’s waste filled blood enters the kidneys through his or her renal artery and it continues to move through smaller arteries until it reaches the nephrons, where it is then filtered once again through minute structures known as glomeruli. This cleaned blood then recycles itself back to the cat’s heart for yet another trip through the body. The remaining blood, which contains the waste material, is then selected as urine through the kidneys to the bladder and will eventually be passed by kitty.