New World Leaf-nosed Bats

The New World leaf-nosed bats (Phyllostomidae) are found from southern North America to South America, specifically from Mexico to northern Argentina. They are ecologically the most varied and diverse family within the order Chiroptera. Most species are insectivorous, but the phyllostomid bats include within their number true predatory species as well as frugivores (subfamily Stenodermatinae and Carolliinae). For example, the false vampire (Vampyrum spectrum), the largest bat in the Americas, eats vertebrate prey including small dove-sized...