Wildlifeof Nepal
Blyth's Horseshoe Bat
Bats
Photo: (c) chiragmunje, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY
Rhinolophus lepidus
Basic stats
Diet
Flying insects, hunted using echolocation
Habitat
Recorded from sea level to 2,338m
Range
Across southern Asia from Afghanistan to Vietnam, including Nepal
Size
Forearm about 42mm
Blyth's horseshoe bat is a small horseshoe bat found across southern Asia from Afghanistan to Vietnam. It can be identified by its pointed, bifid sella, the leaf-like structure on the nose, and has a forearm of around 42mm. It has been recorded from sea level to 2,338m (Wikipedia, general species account).
It uses echolocation to navigate, flying in a fluttering style through cluttered airspace in search of insect prey. A population on Tioman Island in Malaysia flies and hunts in the forest by day as well as at night, probably because the island has no resident bird predators; that finding is from Malaysia, not Nepal. Nationally Near Threatened (Nepal National Red List 2011).
Quick answers
- What does the Blyth's Horseshoe Bat eat?
- Flying insects, hunted using echolocation
- What habitat does the Blyth's Horseshoe Bat live in?
- Recorded from sea level to 2,338m
- Where is the Blyth's Horseshoe Bat found?
- Across southern Asia from Afghanistan to Vietnam, including Nepal
- How big is the Blyth's Horseshoe Bat?
- Forearm about 42mm