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Bumblebee bat

Today I bring you a little about the life of a tiny animal that despite going unnoticed is seriously threatened its existence, I'm talking about the smallest bat of all, the bumblebee bat that is on the list of smallest mammals in the world. Come with me to learn more about this charming species.

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This surprising and small animal can measure a maximum of one inch in length, in addition to weighing a maximum of ¼ of ounce, the truth is that being so tiny this bat is an excellent furrowing the skies, and despite being so small has huge wings and huge ears, this seen from its scale and compared with other species.

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It is also usually called pig nose bat, its skin can go from red to grey tones and some black cases, its powerful claws are able to hold to the perfection any available branch, in addition in its hind legs it has a species of straps that it uses to maintain an excellent form and to make fantastic maneuvers while it flies.

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Something typical and fascinating in this type of flying mammal is that they use a sophisticated system of navigation through the eco location, being able to avoid obstacles with which it could collide, but due to the system in its brain it manages to analyze the environment with anticipation of each flight, this avoids that it collides with branches, objects of all type.

Scientists and naturalists find it difficult to study the species, since there are no fossil records of the species. Although belonging to the great family of bats maintains certain traits very similar to many species.

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Unlike other more solitary species or small groups, bumblebees are usually grouped in colonies that exceed 100 members, a very different characteristic to other species is that they do not need the body heat of other members of the colony and also do not need to cherry, on the contrary, can be extended to rest.

Its main habitat is between Burma and Thailand, this species is practically extinct, or as I prefer to say, disappeared, especially because it can not be seen in urban areas or agricultural cities where it normally lived, it is believed that the natural reserve and without monitoring is in the Sai Yok national park.

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This bat depends a lot on water, so everything indicates that its diet is based on insects, especially wild flies, but do not rule out eating some fruits and other insects such as spiders and some kinds of ant.

In terms of reproduction we have that, unlike other species, bumble bats usually have their mating season in winter and spring. Seasonal females will only have one young, they are so small that once born they are clinging to the mother's body in order to stay safe from any danger or predator.

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As it reproduces very slowly it is risky for their survival, but so little is known that the age at which they reach sexual maturity has not been determined. Its main predators are snakes, monkeys, birds, squirrels, but the biggest predator is the human, who marries it out of curiosity to have such a small body. In addition they are too sensitive to temperature changes as well as allergic to chemicals in cities.

The worst problem is that there are no legal mechanisms that allow the preservation of this species, and in Asian countries where they live people do not seem to care about their welfare.