Wrinkle-Faced Bats Hide Behind Masks to Attract Female Mates

Wrinkle-Faced Bats Hide Behind Masks to Attract Female Mates
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Wrinkle-Faced Bats Hide Behind Masks to Attract Female Mates

Wrinkle-Faced Bats Hide Behind Masks to Attract Female Mates

Humans use facemasks to avoid infection, but the wrinkle-faced bats use it for a totally different reason. A new study published in the recent issue of the journal PLOS One reported that these bats hide behind a mask to seduce mates.

Researchers at the Costa Rica University found that when breeding time rolls around for male wrinkle-faced bats, they gather in groups and cover the lower half of their remarkably wrinkly faces with white-furred flaps of skin that resemble face masks. They then chirp ultrasonic songs through the masks while twiddling their wings. Scientists long suspected that the skin flap under the chins of these elusive bats had something to do with courtship, and researchers recently observed and documented this astonishing sight for the first time.

Wrinkle-faced bats live in forests "from Mexico throughout Central America to Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago," and eat fruits and seeds. Their puckered face is more deeply creased than that of any other bat species. They are difficult to capture, and little is known about their behavior and habits in the wild.

According to a report published Monday on the Live Science website, it was a stroke of good luck when a pair of nature guides unexpectedly spotted several of the bats perching together in a tree hanging exposed and rather calm, during a night walk in a tropical forest in San Ramon, Costa Rica, on September 15, 2018. When lead author Bernal Rodríguez-Herrera saw photos of the rare bats and their unusual behavior, he immediately knew the nature guides had stumbled upon "an incredible find."

Herrera, director of the Center for Research in Biodiversity and Tropical Ecology at Costa Rica University, quickly assembled a team to observe and record the bats. They made 13 visits to the location over six weeks, between September 27 and October 31 that year. Every night, the bats assembled in the same spot between 6 p.m. and midnight local time. The team recorded video with an infrared-sensitive camera, and captured audio of the bats' ultrasonic songs and echolocation calls.

"As many as 30 male bats perched during the same night. They were masked, and through their masks, they sang "courtship songs" composed of echolocation sequences, trills, and whistles, punctuated by sequences of wing beats," Herrera explained.

"When a male successfully attracted a female companion, he immediately lowered his mask to mate with her. After they finished, the male immediately raised the mask again and resumed singing and beating his wings with the rest of the male bats," he added.



UK Living Standards Set to Stagnate for Rest of 2020s, Think Tank Says

Buses cross Waterloo Bridge with the City of London financial district seen behind, in London, Britain, March 5, 2024. (Reuters)
Buses cross Waterloo Bridge with the City of London financial district seen behind, in London, Britain, March 5, 2024. (Reuters)
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UK Living Standards Set to Stagnate for Rest of 2020s, Think Tank Says

Buses cross Waterloo Bridge with the City of London financial district seen behind, in London, Britain, March 5, 2024. (Reuters)
Buses cross Waterloo Bridge with the City of London financial district seen behind, in London, Britain, March 5, 2024. (Reuters)

Living standards in Britain look set to barely grow over the rest of the decade and poorer households are likely to suffer a drop, in part due to a welfare squeeze, according to a report published by a think tank on Thursday.

Median household incomes after taxes, benefits including pensions and housing costs are on course to rise by a total of just 1% more than inflation by the 2029/30 fiscal year, the Resolution Foundation said. Lower-income families are expected to see a 1% fall.

Typical households paying mortgages will see incomes fall by 1% as the impact of higher interest rates feeds through to more borrowers. By contrast, people who own their homes outright are set to see their incomes grow by 3%, the foundation said.

The biggest winners are likely to be pensioners with their incomes forecast to rise by 5%. Families with children are set to have no income growth.

Adam Corlett, principal economist at the think tank, said the forecasts could prove to be too gloomy if the economy grows more quickly than expected. Low-income households would benefit if the government scraps a two-child limit on some family benefits, he said.

The limit was introduced by the previous Conservative government. Prime Minister Keir Starmer is considering ditching it. However, he has said he will not reverse plans to make it harder for people to claim long-term sickness and disability benefits which have run into opposition within his Labor Party.