#chaerephon chapini

[abataday]

Wingtober Day 14: “Fierce”

Chapin’s free-tailed bat is very fiercely fashion-forward. Males in particular have bright white extendable ‘mohawks’ that they presumably use to signal to potential mates. (Nobody has observed this, but since females have far more modest hairstyles, it’s a good guess.)

Not only do these crests extend out bright white, they also waft strong scents from a special gland located on the back of the bat’s head. They probably also sing complex songs, as other male free-tailed bats do. If these bats have lekking behavior (like the hammerhead bat does, for example) I think a gang of displaying males would be quite a multi-sensory experience to behold...

(Don’t make fun of how I gave up on drawing the tree bark please.)

[todaysbat]

Chapin's free-tailed bat!

image description: illustration of a bat with a funny crest on its head

image source: from the American Museum Congo expedition collection of bats by J.A. Allen, H. Lang, and J.P. Chapin, via wikipedia

Chapin's Free-tailed Bat (Chaerephon chapini or Mops chapini)

The males of this species have a crest they can display. They are possibly also called the pale free-tailed bat in parts of their range.

[todaysbat]

can u post about the one bat species that looks like it has a mohawk? i forget the name, thanks ❤️

lmao just did XD. Here have another picture.

image description: a male Chapin's free-tailed bat with his crest displayed.

image source: Merlin Tuttle

[todaysbat]

I'd really appreciate some bat positivity, if you don't mind

image description: an adult male Chapin's free-tailed bat (Chaerephon chapini) displaying his crest. Males of this species use their crests to court females and when they aren't a'courting, they hide their crests like a male peacock folds up their fancy tail feathers.

image source: Merlin Tuttle