Saint Paul's Best Bat Removal

What is a bat's mating habits?

In order to better understand an animal, you need to learn more about what it does, and how it acts in order to survive. While for some, such a lesson may prove scary, it is in fact meant to have the opposite effect. Learning about a commonly feared creature helps you fear it that much less, which is why we're learning more and more about bats. The large majority of people tend to be terrified of bats, both those you find in your attic, but also those you see high up when visiting a cave. These winged little rodents, while chiefly non-aggressive, can give you quite a fright, which is why so many people are terrified of them.

But perhaps, if you got to know them a little better, you wouldn't be. So let's talk a bit about how bats reproduce, shall we?

Of course, in talking about bat reproduction, we can only offer general facts and truths about the bat, as an animal. At present, there are over 1,000 known different species of bats out in the world, and each one of those has its own, particular mating habits. These are often influenced by whether they dwell in rural or urban areas, the climate they inhabit, and so many other different factors. So if you're looking for information on a specific type of bat, we urge that you do more research on that specific species. But for now, let's look at some general bat mating facts.

Bat Mating and the Weather

As with many other creatures, bats' habits are quite heavily influenced by the weather. A female bat will usually mate in the summer, to ensure that she has enough resources throughout her gestation period. As with most creatures, it's harder for bats to find food during the cold, winter months, and so pregnancy can be that much more difficult during that time.

The type of climate a bat lives in will heavily affect its mating habits. For example, if the bat in question lives in a fairly temperate climate that experiences all four seasons roughly the same, the bat will give birth during the summer, to ensure the proper development of the bat embryo.

Other types of climates can be more versatile. Harsh weather, for example, can rarify a bat's mating habits to a certain extent, whereas tropical, Equator climate can mean that the bats in that region reproduce more rapidly. Since the weather is warm for longer periods, there is an abundance of insects and other edibles for the mother bat to feed on during gestation. So this makes it easier for the bat to carry more pregnancies to term at a quicker rate.

Mating Habits

Bats become sexually mature at about 14 months, though this period will depend on the particular species. Bats copulate both at night and during the day (though more frequently in the nighttime). They're fairly promiscuous creatures and don't have the concept of a family unit, copulating with a large number of different bats.

During the day, the male bat will rub its head against the female to copulate, whereas, during the night, it will bite her on the neck to wake her, and then copulate. Like snakes, female bats can store sperm in their reproductive tract for a while, waiting for better weather and more food (which would allow them to better develop the embryo). To give birth, female bats congregate in colonies (often referred to as maternity colonies), primarily during the summer.

While a baby bat is born blind and fairly helpless, it develops rapidly and is pretty much fully independent after about two months. It's around this age that a bat will leave its mother and venture out into the world on its own.