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Unit 07 - Going A Little Batty 1. Curriculum
Links Going A Little Batty links to the following curriculum documents produced by the State of Queensland. Queensland Studies Authority Early Years Curriculum Guidelines Queensland Studies Authority Years 1 to 10 Science Syllabus 1.1 Students discuss their thinking about the needs of living things 1.4 Students collect information about sources of food and shelter for animals in their local environment 2.5 Students collect information showing the diversity of plant and animal forms Queensland Studies Authority Years 1 to 10 Studies of Society
and Environment Syllabus 2.1 Flight Bats (Order Chiroptera) are the only mammals capable of sustained, true flight, an ability otherwise restricted among living animals to birds and insects. The wing of a bat consists of a thin membrane of skin extending from the shoulder to the thumb. The wing is formed from the bats’ fingers, so bats actually fly with their hands. Despite the fact they have tiny legs, bats are very agile. They can fly, crawl up vertical surfaces and scurry along the ground using their thumbs and feet. As they are small mammals, bats can loose heat energy from their bodies very quickly. They have to eat a lot of food to have the energy to fly. Despite their strong smell, bats are clean animals. They spend a lot of time grooming to keep their fur in good shape. Some bats drink by wetting their fur as they fly over water, and then lick off the moisture later. Bats usually rest (or roost) upside down, hanging on to branches and rock crevices with their feet. When a bat has to pass urine or faces, it will turn itself around and hang on with its thumbs so it doesn’t mess itself. There are two different kinds of bats in the tropical rainforest. The smaller bats are called Microbats and belong to the Suborder Microchiroptera. The larger bats are called Megabats and belong to the Suborder Megachiroptera. Microbats use sonar, or echolocation to find their food. With one exception, all species of rainforest Microbats eat insects and spiders. They are insectivorous. The largest species of Australian Microbat, the Ghost Bat, eats reptiles and mammals. This species is carnivorous. Megabats are commonly known as flying foxes, fruit bats and blossom bats. They use vision and smell to find their food. They are all vegetarians. Megabats are seen as lynchpin or keystone species in the Wet Tropics. Without Megabats to pollinate plants and distribute seeds, Australian rainforests would be very different. The largest flying foxes weigh over a kilogram and have wingspans up to of 1.6 metres. The smallest Microbat in the rainforest, the Northern pipistrelle, weighs only five grams when fully grown. This is the weight of an empty matchbox. With the exception of the Ghost Bat, all Australian Microbats are insectivorous. They eat insects (animals with six legs) and spiders (or arachnids, animals with eight legs). These bats locate their food by using echolocation (see section on echolocation). The Golden-tipped Bat eats likes to eat spiders, beetles and moths. It flies slowly through the forest using its quiet sonar to detect spider webs. The Large-eared Horseshoe Bat locates flying insects, such as moths, with its big ears and accurate sonar. The Ghost Bat is Australia’s only carnivorous bat. It eats frogs, lizards, birds, mice, rats and other small bats. It also eats insects and spiders. It has weak sonar, but excellent vision and huge, sensitive ears for picking up noises made by its prey. Baby Ghost Bats are taught to hunt by their mother. Megabats, like blossom bats and fruit bats, live on rainforest fruit and nectar produced by flowering plants. They keep the rainforest alive. Many rainforest trees provide flowers with plenty of nectar for large bats to eat. As they eat, these big bats become covered in pollen which sticks to their fur. When they move from tree to tree, Megabats act as tree pollinators across a whole forest. Forests are healthy when plants are able to cross pollinate. The larger species of Megabats can fly 50 km a night in search of food. They eat fruit with small seeds like figs. As they fly they defecate and the seeds fall to the ground allowing new trees to grow in different places. Megabats also carry big fruit away from the host tree to keep the food away from other hungry bats. After they eat the fruit, the seed is dropped and this helps distribute seeds throughout the forest. Without Megabats to pollinate and distribute plant seeds, the present rainforest systems could collapse. Many Australian rainforest trees are dependent on placental mammals to cross pollinate and spread seeds just as individual flowering plants are dependent on insects such as bees. Only Microbats use sonar or echolocation to find their way around the forest and have very large ears. Megabats use vision and have very large eyes. Echolocation is a way of measuring distance using sound waves. Whales, dolphins and shrews also use sonar. Microbats produce sound at frequencies of 15 – 200 KHz in their larynx. Sound pulses out of their mouths up to 200 times per second. The sound waves are picked up by their big ears which have convoluted shapes to pick up the fainter sounds. The mid-brain of the bat turns the sound information into a complex three dimensional picture. Sound pictures can be as accurate as vision pictures.
Children are encouraged to develop scientific and cultural awareness through a language activity called Bat Words. Here is the background to the Bat Words Activity 3.1 Scientific Names 3.1 Scientific names Animals are given special names to describe their physical features and their behavior, such as what the animal eats. Scientists use Greek and Latin words to name animals and identify their features, biology and ecology. Old Greek and Latin is not widely used and, consequently, the meanings of the words are less likely to change. It is also equally difficult for everyone in the world (except Greek and old Roman scholars) to learn these languages. Scientific terminology concerning rainforest bats relates to bat ecology and physical features. Note: (Gk.) refers to a term of Greek origin and (L.) refers to a word of Latin origin. Words to describe bats chiro (Gk.) = hand Put the words together: chiro + ptera = Chiroptera = hand wings Bat wings are formed by their fingers. chiroptera = hand wings Put the words together: micro + chiroptera = Microchiroptera = small hand
wings (Microbats) Words to describe what bats eat insectum (L.) = jointed form, insect Put the words together: insectum + vorus = insectivorous = an insect eating
bat Put the words together: carni + vorus = carnivorous = a meat eating bat Put the words together: fructus + vorus = fructivorous = fruit eating bat While most Megabats have snout noses like a dog, the Queensland Tube-nosed Bat has tubes protruding from its nose which act as snorkels allowing the bat to breathe while feeding on pulpy fruit. 3.2 Indigenous language names There are many different indigenous language groups in the Wet Tropics region. All children can learn the local language names for bats and other animals and plants of the rainforest. Each of Australia’s indigenous languages is intimately related to particular country. To learn local language, contact the relevant Land Council who will put you in touch with your local indigenous elder. Your elder, or their nominee, will visit the school and introduce the children to the local language and naming system for animals and plants. Land Councils are listed in the Resources section. Dictionaries and language textbooks identify indigenous names for different animals. The publications used in the Bat Words activity are listed in the Resources section and include Djabukay (Tjabukai), Girramay and Jirrbal, Kuku-Yalangi, Yidin and Nagdjon languages.
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