page_title: Bat
section_title: Palaeontology
hierarchical_section_title: Bat / Palaeontology
caption_attribution_description: Icaronycteris, ROM
context_page_description: Bats are mammals in the order Chiroptera. Bats are nocturnal – they are active during the night, dusk, or dawn and they sleep during the day.
  Most use echolocation to catch prey and to find their way about. As nighttime animals, bats avoid direct competition with birds, few of which are nocturnal.
  Bats usually live in caves or trees. In North America and in Europe they sometimes live in people's houses or barns. They are protected animals in the U.K.
  Bats are a successful group. They are the second largest order of mammals: there are more than 1,200 species of bats. This means that 20% of all living mammal species – one in five – are bats.
  About 70% of bats are insectivores, which is the basal form of life for this group. The common pipistrelle is a successful example. Most of the rest are fruit-eaters. A few species suck blood, and a few large ones are carnivorous.
  Bats live everywhere except the Arctic, Antarctic and a few oceanic islands. They usually roost in caves, old buildings, or trees.
  Traditionally, bats are divided into two groups. Microbats mostly use echo-location and catch insects, but just a few eat fish or drink blood.
caption: Icaronycteris
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