Vertebrate Zoology

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fruit bat

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

fruit bat fruit-eating bat found in tropical regions of the Old World. It is relatively large and differs from other bats in the possession of an independent, clawed second digit; it also depends on sight rather than echo-location in maintaining orientation. The Pteropodidae, or flying foxes, are S Asian fruit bats whose short jaws and powerful teeth are specially adapted for piercing the rinds of tough fruit. They include the largest of all bats, the kalang ( Pteropus vampyrus ), which has a wingspan greater than 5 ft (1.5 m). The Macroglossidae, or long-tongued fruit bats, are widespread throughout S Asia, Africa, New Guinea, and Australia. Specialized for a diet of pollen and nectar, their snouts and tongues are greatly elongated. All fruit bats are highly mobile, traveling as much as 30 mi (48 km) in search of food. They nest in trees and all but a few species are completely nocturnal. Fruit bats are classified in the phylum Chordata , subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Chiroptera.

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fruit bat

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English | 2009 | Copyright

fruit bat • n. a bat (family Pteropodidae) with a long snout and large eyes, feeding chiefly on fruit or nectar and found mainly in the Old World tropics.

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"fruit bat." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 30 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"fruit bat." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 30, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-fruitbat.html

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fruit bat

A Dictionary of Zoology | 1999 | | Copyright

fruit bat See MEGACHIROPTERA.

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MICHAEL ALLABY. "fruit bat." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 30 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MICHAEL ALLABY. "fruit bat." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (May 30, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-fruitbat.html

MICHAEL ALLABY. "fruit bat." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Retrieved May 30, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-fruitbat.html

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Activity patterns in a captive colony of Jamaican fruit bats, Artibeus... Magazine article from: Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Science; 8/9/2007
	Hanging by a Thread.(Rodrigues fruit bat)(Brief Article) Magazine article from: Animals; 9/1/2000
	Poachers massacre fruit bats on Rota. News Wire article from: PAC - Pacific Islands Broadcasting Association; 11/7/2008