Wildlife
Common vampire bats need to feed on blood almost daily to avoid starvation. They are are not the fearsome, blood-sucking creatures portrayed in the movies, however, but rather ordinary-looking, medium-sized bats with a highly evolved feeding method. They don't actually suck blood, but lap it up from cuts made by their razor-sharp incisors. A chemical in the saliva stops the victim's blood clotting and numbs the wound. Vampire bats live in large colonies in Central and South America where they feed mostly from the abundant livestock.
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Vampire supersenses
Vampire bats use super senses, razor-sharp teeth and special saliva to feed on blood.
Vampire bats use various super senses such as echolocation to find their prey. Once a victim is located, razor-sharp teeth and special saliva containing anticoagulants is used to prevent their blood-filled victim's wound from healing. This provides a steady pool of blood for them to lap up.
Sneaky suckers
Vampire bats feed on sea lions' blood by creeping up on them from behind.
Vampire bats feed on sea lions' blood by landing close to their victims and then creeping up on them from behind. This means the bats are less likely to be seen or injured by large prey.
Bloodsucking bats
Vampire bats can consume half their body weight in blood in a single feed.
Vampire bats feed on sea lion blood in parts of South America. They can consume half their body weight in blood in a single feed. They attack areas where the skin is thinner, making it easier for the bats to get their blood meal.
Walls of blood
Gordon Buchanan comes across a blood-soaked vampire bat roost.
Gordon Buchanan comes across a blood-soaked vampire bat roost.
Fearsome faces
Steve Backshall takes a close look at blood-sucking vampire bats.
Steve Backshall takes a close look at blood-sucking vampire bats.
The Common vampire bat can be found in a number of locations including: Amazon Rainforest, South America. Find out more about these places and what else lives there.
The following habitats are found across the Common vampire bat distribution range. Find out more about these environments, what it takes to live there and what else inhabits them.
Discover what these behaviours are and how different plants and animals use them.
Additional data source: Animal Diversity Web
Least Concern
Population trend: Stable
Year assessed: 2008
Classified by: IUCN 3.1
The common vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) is a small, leaf-nosed bat native to the Americas. It is one of three extant species of vampire bat, the other two being the hairy-legged and the white-winged vampire bats. These species are the only parasitic mammals. The common vampire bat mainly feeds on the blood of livestock, approaching its prey at night while they are sleeping. It uses its razor-sharp teeth to cut open the skin of its hosts and laps up their blood with its long tongue. The species is highly polygynous, and dominant adult males defend harems of females. It is one of the most social of bat species with a number of cooperative behaviors such as alloparenting, social grooming and food sharing. Because it feeds on livestock and is a carrier of rabies, the common vampire bat is considered a pest. Its conservation status is categorized as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) because of "its wide distribution, presumed large population tolerance of a degree of habitat modification, and because it is unlikely to be declining at nearly the rate required to qualify for listing in a threatened category."
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Helpless young
Carnivorous
Colonial
Adapted to flying
Acoustic communication
Blood sucker
Nocturnal
Parasitic
Polygynous
Social
Chemical communication
Territorial
Echolocation and ultrasound
Viviparous