Megaderma lyra

The Indian false vampire bat usually moves in groups of dozens and does not mix with other bats. It is carnivorous and feeds on insects, spiders, and small vertebrates (such as small fish, frogs, birds, mice, and even other species of bats). It often flies within 3 meters of the ground to find food, and often goes to houses to hunt geckos and insects on the walls. This species is carnivorous, and has some appearance characteristics similar to vampire bats. It is a completely different group from the vampire bats in South America, and does not have the habit of sucking blood.

The Indian false vampire bat lives in caves in broad-leaved forests at an altitude of 1,000 to 1,500 meters. It lives in groups, with dozens of individuals in each group. It hides in the cave during the day and goes out in the evening. It mainly feeds on various insects, and also eats small birds and frogs. The gestation period is about 5 months, and one baby is born per litter.

In China, it is distributed in Guangdong, Guangxi, Sichuan, Chongqing, Hunan, Guizhou, Fujian, Yunnan and Tibet. Abroad, it extends to the Indian subcontinent in southern Asia.

The Indian false vampire bat lives in caves, tunnels, buildings and empty tree holes.

The body is medium in size. The forearm is 60-75mm long. The ears are huge and oval, the bases of the two ears are connected at the forehead, and the tragus is bifurcated. The snout has a rectangular protrusion of the posterior nose. No tail. The second finger has one phalanx, the third finger has two phalanxes, and the tibia is more than half the length of the forearm. The snout of the skull is short, the back is relatively flat, and the sagittal crest is low and not obvious. There are no incisors in the upper jaw, and the incisors in the lower jaw are slightly trifurcated. The upper body hair is light gray-brown, and the lower body hair color is lighter, with dark gray at the base and dirty white at the tip.