Biometrics
Length: 8,3 - 11,3 cm
Wingspan: 26 - 32 cm
Weight: 11 - 20 g
Curiosities
Like other species of bat, the Leisler’s bat can feed on agricultural pests, playing an important role in the control of insect populations.
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- Morcego-arborícola-pequeno (Nyctalus leisleri)
Leisler’s bat
(Nyctalus leisleri)
Class Mammalia, Order Chiroptera, Family Vespertilionidae
General description
The Leisler’s bat has dense, long and bicolored fur, with a brownish black base and reddish-brown (in the dorsal region) or yellow-brown (in the ventral region) tip. The wings, snout and ears are a dark, brownish-black color. Its ears are large, triangular in shape, but with a rounded tip, and the tragus has the shape of a mushroom. Its wings are long and narrow.
Feeding
Like all European bats, this species is insectivorous. Their diet is mainly composed of mosquitoes and nocturnal butterflies, but can also include other insect groups, such as beetles.
Behavior
It’s a nocturnal animal, leaving its roost shortly after sunset to feed, usually flying in open spaces or over treetops. It uses its long-distance echolocation to search for food and navigate. This species is a forest bat and uses cavities in trees as roosts, which can be natural hollows or built by birds such as woodpeckers. It is a migratory bat and can fly great distances to feed every night (up to 10 km).
In Portugal
The preferred habitat of the Leisler’s bat is woodlands and forest, such as oak forests. It also frequently flies around lakes and riparian areas. It occurs throughout mainland Portugal, with a greater density in the North, although its national distribution is still being studied. It is known that the destruction of native forests and the removal of old trees negatively affect this species, as they reduce the availability of roosts and feeding areas. The use of pesticides is also harmful, decreasing the density of available food.