The wing loading is considered exceptionally high, meaning that it has a large body weight relative to the wing area. Unfortunately, bull sharks are often pulled up by fishermen as bycatch, which is one of the reasons that scientists predict that populations are decreasing, but more information is needed, which is why The Nature Conservancy has included the bull shark as part of a larger marine life tagging and tracking program in the Gulf of Mexico. If the grassy expanses continue to degrade unchecked, they will no longer provide the nurturing resources and conditions to sustain sharks and many other species. Description: The hallmark of these slender sharks is their long tail (caudal) fins, which measure roughly half the total length of their body. Don't criticize what you do not understand. They are Africa's largest bat, with wingspans up to 38 inches (97 cm). https://www.thoughtco.com/hammer-headed-bat-facts-4177418 (accessed May 1, 2023). He's cute! The polygynous males do not stick around to help raise their young. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. And they are a critical nursery for biodiversity, sustaining birds, crabs, and fish includingsharks. [12] Typically, 60120 honks are produced per minute. [13] Newborns weigh approximately 40g (1.4oz) at birth. With the onset of a global pandemic causing the shutdown of fan conventions all over the world, it was only a matter of time before the cancellations hit the Theres something strange moving through Kentucky like a virus, twisting through the Mammoth Cave system and hovering in the skies above the Appalachian Mountains. Their larynx and rostrum are enlarged, creating a resonating chamber that makes it easier for them to create the loud honking noises that attract the females. T. S. Palmer speculated that Allen chose the name Hypsignathus to allude to the "deeply arched mouth" of the species. The creature is often described as a flying biped with hooves, but there are many variations. [8][9], The hammer-headed bat is the largest bat in mainland Africa. Therefore, males have greatly enlarged larynges, about three times the size of females',[12] extending through most of the thoracic cavity, and measuring half the length of the spine. The juveniles spend about a year feeding and growing here, and then head out to the ocean. An alternative term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of e Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. Males and females also greatly differ in appearance, making it the most sexually dimorphic bat species in the world. These estuary habitats clean the water and act as a first-line defense against the force of incoming waves for coastal communities. If you read on the Wikipedia page about the Jersey Devil, it seems that this creature is only a local legend in New Jersey. Individuals of both sexes are frequently found roosting alone, though they may roost in small groups of around four individuals. "In Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia folklore, the Jersey Devil (also known as the Leeds Devil) is a legendary creature said to inhabit the Pine Barrens of South Jersey. Hammer-Headed Bat on The IUCN Red List site -, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammer-headed_bat, https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/10734/115098825, https://creazilla.com/nodes/3434072-hammer-headed-bat-vector. The wings are blackish brown in color. It has patches of white fur at the base of the ears, though sometimes indistinct. [29], As of 2016[update], the hammer-headed bat is evaluated as a least-concern species by the IUCNits lowest conservation priority. The hammer-headed bat is frugivorous, consuming a variety of fruits such as figs, bananas, and mangoes, though a few instances of carnivory have been noted. The Jersey Devil sightings might be cranes and whatnot, but where did the legend come from in the first place? But while it may look like a carnivore, it only eats fruit. It is not considered a species of conservation concern due to its large range and presumably large population size. Strong sexual dimorphism is observed in the species, as males are significantly larger than females. Groups are of mixed sex and age, unlike other bat species which segregate based on sex. Enter your email address to subscribe to Week in Weird and receive the latest weird news delivered directly to your inbox! The common adjective is "nocturnal", A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die A frugivore is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts, and seeds. As far as the face of the Hammerhead Bat it appears to be a better explanation of what people of the Pine Barrens have been seeing as opposed to the Sandhill Crane. There is a sole report of a bat eating a chicken, but no carnivorous activity has been substantiated. Hammerhead bats are native to Central Africa, and . The timing of the dry season varies depending on the locality, but in general the first breeding season is from June to August and the second is from December to February. [13] Females reach sexual maturity faster than males, and can reproduce at six months. These differences include several adaptations that help males produce and amplify vocalizations: the males' larynges (vocal cords) are about three times as large as those of females, and they have large resonating chambers on their faces. The bats have been spotted from Senegal in Western Africa to northern Angola, nearly 3,000 miles to the southeast. This website uses cookies to enhance your experience and analyze performance and traffic on our website. Habitat: Habitat for this species includes the surf zone, shallow bays, and coral and rocky reefs. Coastal conservation projects in help New Jersey salt marshes stand up to a rising sea. It chews the fruit, swallowing the juice and soft pulp, before spitting out the rest. [12] It displays a mix of solitary and social behavior. Animal Diversity Web. They eat fruit mostly figs. Erika Nortemann / The Nature Conservancy, Cape May Wetlands: It has two mating seasons each year during the dry seasons. Here's why! Photographs exhibiting the forced perspective optical illusion have caused confusion about the relative sizes of frogs, rats, snakes, and half-eaten sharks. Thankfully, these extraordinary bats are not considered to be a threatened species, though increasing deforestation and climate change are beginning to impact their natural habitats. Additionally, nucleic acid sequences associated with the virus have been isolated from its tissues. When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. [13], Males overall have boxy heads with enormous lips, while the females, with their narrower snouts, have more foxlike faces. (MacNamara et al., 1979; Langevin and Barclay, 1990) Habitat Regions tropical Terrestrial Biomes forest Wetlands swamp Other Habitat Features riparian Range elevation 1800 (high) m 5905.51 (high) ft Ocean biodiversity begins with sharks, which are key indicators of an ecosystems health; if they are thriving, then the ecosystem is functioning well. 2023 The Nature Conservancy The average female weighs eight ounces and doesnt appear all that different from other fruit bats. When a female's selection is made, she lands beside a male and mating occurs. Fun Fact: Sand tiger sharks burp! Hammer-headed bats prefer to roost in trees, typically 20-30 m (66-98 ft) above the ground, and move to a new roost every 5 to 9 days. Fun Fact: Threshers slap prey with their tail, stunning them long enough to devour. George Steinmetz, Blue Crab: In July 2018, many social media users wondered if they were witnessing a similar creation in an image of an odd-looking, large animal said to be a "hammerhead bat": We have not been able to pinpoint the exact origins of this photograph, but we can say that the hammerhead bat (also known as the "hammer-headed bat") is a genuine animal that looks like the one pictured here. Females reach sexual maturity at 6 months of age. The hammer-headed bat ( Hypsignathus monstrosus ), also known as hammer-headed fruit bat and big-lipped bat, is a megabat widely distributed in West and Central Africa. [15][16], Hammer-headed bats are frugivores. Researchers Just Found A 500-Year-Old Mummified 'Goatelope' Inside A Melting Glacier, 44 Mind-Blowing Pictures Of Ordinary Creatures Under An Electron Microscope, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. On average, they grow up to three feet long. Description: Very large sharks with gray, torpedo shaped bodies and white bellies, a pointy snout and sizeable mouths filled with rows of razor-sharp teeth. [22] Its ability to produce extremely loud vocalizations means that some consider it one of Africa's most significant nocturnal pests. This hammer-headed bat looks unnaturally large because it is closer to the camera than its handler. According to Cape Bay Magazine, skeptic, author andSkeptoidproducer Brian Dunning certainly believes this: "In most cases like this, some of the sightings turn out to be mistaken identifications of everyday animals or something else," he has said. Males gather in a particular region, known as a lek and there they establish "display territories". Hammer-headed bats are nocturnal creatures and sleep during the day in tree roosts. [10], The wings are characterized by low aspect ratio, meaning that it has a smaller wingspan relative to the wing area. Hammer-headed bats mate through what is known as a 'lek system'. Common Names: Hammer-headed bat, hammerhead bat, big-lipped bat Basic Animal Group: Mammal Size: Wingspan 27.0-38.2 inches; Body 7.7-11.2 inches Weight: 7.7-15.9 ounces Lifespan: 30 years Diet: Herbivore Habitat: Equatorial Africa Population: Unknown Conservation Status: Least Concern Description George Steinmetz, Juvenille Sandbar Sharks: [12] Most records of this species occur in rainforest habitat, including lowland rainforest, swamp forest, riverine forests, and mosaics of forest and grassland. This bat however is only 9-10 inches tall and while that is large for a bat it's kind of hard to think if you saw it flying in the sky that you'd believe it was human sized. Her work has been featured in People, Teen Vogue, BET, HipHopDX, XXL Magazine, The Source, Vibe, The Los Angeles Times, and more. It has been investigated as a potential reservoir of the Ebola virus, with several testing positive for antibodies against the virus. Cool bat. Females fly through the group to evaluate potential mates. Like many other mammals, baby bats are known as pups. ThoughtCo, Aug. 28, 2020, thoughtco.com/hammer-headed-bat-facts-4177418. But the one up that the Crane has over the bat is that the Crane is native to New Jersey and the bat is native to Africa. The common description is that of a kangaroo-like or wyvern-like creature with a goat- or horse-like head, leathery bat-like wings, horns, small arms with clawed hands, legs with cloven hooves, and a forked tail. Males and females greatly differ in appearance which makes it the most sexually dimorphic bat species in the world. In 2016 a great white nursery was discovered in the New York Bight, an area along the Atlantic Coast that extends northeasterly fromCape MayInlet in New Jersey toMontauk Pointon the eastern tip ofLong Island, New York. 2015. It is larger than an adult human in size and looks like as drawn. Although colonies up to 25 bats have been observed, the average hammer-headed fruit bat roost is fewer than five bats. The hammer-headed bat, with wingspans up to 38 inches (97 cm), is Africas largest bat. The hammer-headed bat was described as a new species in 1861 by American scientist Harrison Allen. [12] Males also have resonating chambers to increase the volume of sound production. It was discovered in Papua New Guinea in 2011, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1318093/Bat-resembling-Star-Wars-Yoda-discovered-Papua-New-Guinea-rainforest.html. Habitat:These sharks commonly reside on continental shelves, and in bays and other inshore waters. The bats usually gather in roosts with less than five individual animals, even though . Help protect the wetlands and waters that sharks rely on. Some will come back in their second year.". [3] However, in 1997, Epomophorini was recognized as part of the subfamily Epomophorinae. | Their bellies are white while the rest of their body ranges from brown, gray, blue-gray to blackish. It is also known as an African fruit bat, along with two other varieties (Myonycteris torquata and Rousettus aegyptiacus). They favor humid habitats, including rivers, swamps, mangroves, and palm forests. They are active during the night, probably in order to avoid overheating. Unless you count the stars of the billion or so reality shows set in New Jersey, the Garden State's strangest and most famous creature is the Jersey Devil. Males have a large head with enlarged rostrum, larynx and lips that allows for the production of loud honking calls; the appearance of females is similar to most other fruit bats. [26][27][28] Megabats like the hammer-headed bat tend to be over-sampled relative to other potential Ebola virus hosts, meaning that they may have an unwarranted amount of research attention, and as of 2015[update], no bat hunter or researcher is known to be the index case ("patient zero") in an Ebola outbreak. The early evening peak is when the majority of copulation occurs. Individuals may roost alone or in small groups. In New Jerseys back bays and marshes, juvenile sandbar sharks often feed on blue crabs. [10], Instead of the typical mammalian karyotype where females have two X chromosomes and males have one each of X and Y, males have a single X chromosome and no Y chromosome, known as X0 sex-determination system. The drawing I have made here on this page, was made in 2013 when I had the sighting of the Big Bat. The bat that uses its hammer-shaped head to sing. [12], However, some populations of hammer-headed bats in West Africa do not use leks. 1.22K subscribers The hammerhead bat (or "hammer-headed bat") is a real animal that 100% looks like the classic visual of the Jersey Devil. She is also the author of The Uprising Series and is the CEO of G-Force Marketing & Publicity, which has been featured in The Hollywood Reporter and has obtained film, television, radio, and print placements for blue-chip clients all over the world. Males, in contrast, search for areas rich with food, traveling up to 10km (6.2mi) to reach particularly good food patches. It has been investigated as a potential reservoir of the Ebola virus, with several testing positive for antibodies against the virus. From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jersey_Devil A HORSE LIKE FACE: Based on this varied description, the Jersey Devil's face could resemble a deer, horse, kangaroo, moose or a bat, all of which are land mammals that mankind has been familiar with for many centuries. This creature seems to be by all means associated with the Agenda group. [3] The holotype had been collected by French-American zoologist Paul Du Chaillu[3] in Gabon. Summaries. In contrast, males are not sexually mature until eighteen months. Helmenstine, Anne Marie, Ph.D. "Hammer-Headed Bat Facts (Big-Lipped Bat)." "Hypsignathus Monstrosus: Hammer-Headed Fruit Bat." Every New Jerseyan has heard at least some variation of its tale. The ears are triangular and blackish-brown, and the eyes are very large. The hammer-headed bat is sometimes considered a pest due to its frugivorous diet and its extremely loud honking noises at night. It is larger than an adult human in size and looks like as drawn. It is the only member of the genus Hypsignathus, which is part of the tribe Epomophorini along with four other genera. A profile on the large fruit bat from Bat Magazine provides some more information about this unusual-looking animal: The hammer-headed bat (Hypsignathus monstrosus), widely distributed in equatorial Africa, is one of three species of African fruit bat thought to be asymptomatically infected with the Ebola virus; though scientists do not know if the species is an incidental host or a reservoir of Ebolavirus. Females will fly through the lek, selecting a male by landing on a branch next to him. They are also persecuted as pests due to their frugivorous diet and their extremely loud honking noises at night. | Female hammer-headed bats have the fox-faced appearance common to most fruit bats. While figs are their favored food, they also eat bananas, mangoes, and guavas. The tongue is large and powerful, with an expanded, tridentate tip. Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat (Epomophorus wahlbergi) also has a hammer-head face. These "pings" are picked up by sensors along the east coast so scientists can monitor the sharks' journeykind of like an EZ Passallowing scientists like Dr. Dunton to see how sharks are moving through New Jersey's marshes and along the coast. Mobile Terms & Conditions Habitat: Sandbar sharks prefer bays, harbors and even the mouths of rivers where, true to their name, they frequent shallow waters over sandbars. Approx An insectivore is a carnivorous plant or animal that eats insects. This breed of bat (Hammerhead) might have been mistaken as the Jersey Devil. It much resembles the fruit bat which is a species of bat on Earth, although the head of this big bat reminds me of the head of a horse. Hammer-headed bats are found in West and Central Africa, including the following countries: Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo, and Uganda. The tongue has backwards-facing papillae used to extract juice from fruits. They sound a little like croaking frogs! The bats are preyed upon by humans and birds of prey. Despite their menacing looks, sand tiger sharks are a docile, non-aggressive species. [10] It relies on camouflage to hide from predators. Juveniles that survive this first foray into the Atlantic often return a few months later to their birth bay to spend a second year maturing. The Jersey Devil There, they produce loud, honking vocalizations to attract females. Males overall have boxy heads with enormous lips, while the females, with their narrower snouts, have more foxlike faces. Its predators are not well-known, but may include hawks. [12] The guano (feces) typically contains seeds from ingested fruits, indicating that it may be an important seed disperser. However it is interesting that I would have seen the creature in mental images, presumably before I had known about the Jersey Devil, especially considering how surprised I was to come across this picture of the Jersey Devil, and that my Big Bat and the Jersey Devil would look identical to each other. I had at first not listed the big bat as an alien species, I had meant to list it, but the second sighting was helpful. [18] Males display for around four hours before foraging, with peaks in lekking activity in the early evening and before dawn. Description: Large sharks withrobust, muscular bodies of light brown or gray color. Here's Why. Allen placed the species into a newly-created genus, Hypsignathus. "WHAT-IS-IT VISITS ALL SOUTH JERSEY" declared the front page of The Inquirer on Jan. 21, 1909 - above a photograph of "actual proof-prints of the strange creature." "Hooflike tracks" could be seen in the snow "in practically every block in Burlington city" - including rooftops - throwing . Figs make up much of their diet, but mangos, bananas and guavas may also be consumed. Apex predators like great white and mako sharks lurk in the deep and will not hesitate to make a meal out of their smaller cousins. [2] Initially, Allen identified the hammer-headed bat as a member of the subfamily Pteropodinae of the megabats. The picture on the right is from the Wikipedia article. These differences include several adaptations that help males produce and amplify vocalizations: the males' larynges (vocal cords) are about three times as large as those of females, and they have large resonating chambers on their faces. For buoyancy while hunting, they gulp air at the waters surface to inflate their stomach. The Nature Conservancy is a nonprofit, tax-exempt charitable organization (tax identification number 53-0242652) under Section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. The species is locally common and is typically found in lowland tropical moist forests, riverine forests, swamp forests, mangroves and palm forests, where it roosts in trees. It has two mating seasons each year during the dry seasons. Global sites represent either regional branches of The Nature Conservancy or local affiliates of The Nature Conservancy that are separate entities. Offspring are born five or six months later, typically a singleton, though twins have been documented. New Jersey has 200,000 acres of coastal salt marsh. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Animals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents. [19] The classical lek is defined by four criteria:[10], Males form these leks along streams or riverbeds during the mating season, which lasts 13 months. If you read on the Wikipedia page about the Jersey Devil, it seems that this creature is only a local legend in New Jersey. Instead, they have a harem system. The resource-rich wetlands also provide stable and abundant food like crustaceans, fish and rays, improving the shark pups odds for survival. As one of the largest bats in the world, one would think that it would be a threat to humankind, especially since it cuts such an imposing figure. They drive economic benefits through recreation and fishing. Check out a sample Nature News email. It lacks a tail. They are also a favorite food of sand tiger sharks. Fun Fact: Smooth dogfish feed on crustaceans, squid, bony fish and small shellfish, using their tiny, rounded teeth to crush prey. It forages at night, sleeping during the day in tree roosts. I think it looks rather cute myself. Despite its fearsome attributes, however, this bat is a mild-mannered fruit-eater. 2. To this day, additional studies are being conducted by scientists to determine the true nature of Ebola transmission, according to Science, but as of 2022, there are no definitive studies that link the bat to Ebola transmission. The Jersey Devil plagues many of those trying to make sense of cryptozoology, especially because of its highly unusual description. Unlike many other bat species that segregate based on sex, males and females will roost together during the day. The NIH reported: Molecular testing implicated this species and other African bats as potential reservoir hosts for Ebola virus, and it was one of only two fruit bat species epidemiologically linked to the 2008 Luebo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ebola outbreak.. ? After all, who could believe that Pine Barrens is actually haunted by a long-legged, cloven-hooved, bat-winged monster with a long, goat-like face and a body like a kangaroo? We may have detected a typo. Instead, they have a harem system. Being active at night helps keep the animals from overheating. Smooth dogfish and sandbar sharks feed on blue crabs. [22] It is eaten in Nigeria,[23] as well as seasonally in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The hammerhead bat is a mammal and its habitat is in equatorial Africa. We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office. Aesop, The problem with people who have no vices is that generally you can be pretty sure they're going to have some pretty annoying virtues. Male hammer-headed bats are larger than females and look so different from their mates that it would be easy to think they belonged to a different species. Some have suggested that the strange-looking, long-faced hammerhead bat(Hypsignathus monstrosus), which can have a wingspan of almost 40 inches, looks a lot like the traditional depiction of the cryptid. The Sandhill Crane is a favorite and popular explanation of skeptics claiming what Jersey Devil witnesses have been seeing.
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