Emballonuridae, from Greek emballōn (“throw in”) and Greek οὐρά (ourā́, “tail”), means “erect tail”, in reference to the fact that the tail of the members of this family have a loose appearance.

Common names of members

Sac-winged or sheath-tailed bats.

Distribution

Found in the Neotropics, Afrotropics, southern Asia, Australia and South Pacific islands.

Size

They are some of the smallest of all bats, and range from 3.5 to 10 cm in body length.

Morphology

They are generally brown or gray. The heads are comparable to those of domestic dogs, and their wings are long and narrow. All of them have long ears, a lot of fur and long wings formed from four elongated fingers covered by a cutaneous membrane. Though, their legs are short with sharp claws on their feet for hanging upside down while resting.

Habitat & Ecology

Rainforests, shrublands, savannahs and other tropical environments. They are known to roost in well-illuminated hollows, crevices and caves.

Diet

They may be insectivorous, but occasionally eat fruits.

Reproduction 

Most bat species are polygynous, where one male mates with multiple females, but there are polygynandry systems too, where multiple males mate with multiple females. Females are responsible for most of the parenting care. Males responsible for feeding and protecting young. Newborn bats cannot fly so they stay in the dwell or climb on their mothers. Usually they can fly after 2-4 weeks.

Total species known

54

Species in the collection

1

Species in Hong Kong

1

References

Fenton, M. B., Simmons, N. B. (2015). Bats - A World of Science and Mystery. The University of Chicago Press.

Vaughan, T.A., Ryan, J. M., Czaplewski, N. J. (2000). Mammalogy. Saunders College Publishing.

Macdonald, D. W. (2006). The Encyclopedia of mammals. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acref/9780199206087.001.0001.