When you think of bats, what comes to mind? Blood sucking? Mosquito eating? These are in fact true attributes of bats – most definitely the mosquito eating – here in New Mexico. Though we do not have any vampire bats here, insectivorous bats make up the majority of the 29 species that reside in our state. But did you know that we are also home to three kinds of nectar feeding bats? Found only in the southern part of the state, the Lesser long-nose bat (Leptonycteris yerbabuenae), the Greater long-nosed bat (Leponycteris nivalis) and the Mexican long-tongued bat (Choeronycteris mexicana) feed on the nectar-plentiful flowers of desert plants in New Mexico.
These species of bats serve as primary pollinators for several species of agave. Adapted for specialized feeding, they migrate north from Mexico to follow bloom periods. Exceptionally strong and agile in flight, they can hover much like hummingbirds as they feed on the night-blooming flowers. And as they feed, they both consume and collect pollen on their fur as they move from plant to plant. The consumption of pollen provides the bat with vitamins and minerals as well as extra protein, while the nectar itself supplies the sugar.
To observe these pollinating bats in New Mexico, you will need to travel south. The Lesser long-nosed and Greater long-nosed bats are primarily found in Hidalgo County in the southwestern corner of the state – near the Animas, Big Hatchet, and Peloncillo Mountains. Recent research on the Lesser long-nosed bat, however, has documented an expansion of their range into northern Grant County, with sightings along the Gila River. The Mexican long-tongued bat is primarily found only in areas like the Big Hatchet Mountains. New research is shedding light on the ranges of these elusive night-time feeders as their habits and migratory patterns are the focus of growing research with the concern of the health and preservation of agave and other flowering cacti in the southwest United States.
Text by Milu Velardi
Milu Velardi is a certified wildlife biologist originally from Colorado. She currently works within LANL’s biological resources team assisting in threatened and endangered species compliance and migratory bird work. When not at the lab, Milu enjoys caving with bats, trail running, movie watching, and general eating. Since she is always looking at the sky for birds or following mammal tracks in the mud, hiking with her can be challenging, but that’s one of the many highlights of living and working in Los Alamos.