This makes me sad.
If vampire bats miss two meals on successive nights, they will likely starve to death.
But here is the really cool thing about this, which just goes to prove that the women in the world are awesome.
You see, the female bats who successfully feed are known to regurgitate blood to share with less fortunate companions.
I have to say that the vampire bat is one of the most misunderstood animals in the world. Despite its reputation, it has developed one of the most remarkable systems of cooperation found in nature.
There are three species of vampire bats. All of them are native to Central and South America.
The most well-known is the Common Vampire Bat. Unlike most bats, vampire bats feed exclusively on blood. This diet is known as hematophagy. So. Where do they get their blood? They typically target livestock, wild mammals, and occasionally birds. When they do this, they make a small incision with their razor-sharp teeth. Then they lap up the blood that flows from the wound. Kind of like drinking a Bloody Mary, maybe.
This diet of bloody proportions comes with a serious challenge. Blood contains relatively few calories. Who knew? On top of that, those vampire bats have extremely fast metabolisms.
As a result, they can survive only a short time without feeding. As mentioned, researchers have found that a healthy vampire bat may die after about two or three days without a meal.
To overcome this risk, vampire bats have evolved a sophisticated form of social cooperation. It is the females who do this. They live in stable colonies and form long-term social bonds with one another. Girlfriends.
So. When a bat returns to the roost hungry after an unsuccessful night of hunting, a well-fed girl-bat-friend may regurgitate a small amount of blood and share it. This donation can provide enough nourishment to keep the hungry bat alive until it has another opportunity to feed.
What makes this behavior especially fascinating is that it is not random charity. Studies have shown that bats are more likely to share with close relatives, frequent grooming partners, and individuals who have shared food with them in the past. In other words, vampire bats appear to maintain a system of cooperation. They help those who have helped them before.
Researchers often say that vampire bats are one of the clearest examples of altruistic behavior in mammals outside of humans. They have a willingness to share a life-sustaining meal. And this demonstrates that survival in nature is not always driven by competition. Cooperation can be just as important as anything else.
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“No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another.” — Charles Dickens
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“We rise by lifting others.” — Robert Ingersoll
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“Kindness gives birth to kindness.” — Sophocles
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“In nature, nothing exists alone.” — Rachel Carson
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