Bats why hang upside down

When bats relax, the weight of their upper bodies pulls down on the tendons connected to the talons and they clench closed. The weight of the bats keeps their talons closed, and the talon joint locks them into position. This system is so effective that, if bats die while roosting, they will continue to hang upside- down until something or someone shakes them loose.

Need to send a top-secret note fast? Don't have time to write it all out in code? We hope today's Wonder of the Day didn't drive you too batty!

If you're up for learning a bit more about bats, then ask a few friends or family members to hang out for a while to explore the following activities:. Hi friend! We're in the process of updating our older Wonders. On our new Wonders, we provide sources where we get our information! Thanks for the advice! Hi Charlotte. Bats CAN have rabies.

That's true. Looking at their behavior can give you a clue, though. If they're active during the day, there's a good chance they're sick--if they weren't disrupted from their roost. Great question--sounds like it's time for a Wonder Journey to learn how many babies a bat usually has!

Let us know what you learn. Hi Aseel. Those are two great questions. Sounds like a Wonder Journey is in order--search the Internet or visit your local library to learn more.

Let us know what you find out! Hi, Jake. Itchy bats sound We'd love to learn more about them. What can you tell us? Like this Wonder said, bats are specially adapted to hang on while relaxed.

Not so much. Thanks for stopping by! You're right, Jahsir! Bats do sleep upside down! This Wonder will help you learn even more about why bats sleep like this - let us know what you discover! We do like shedding light on that topic. Hi, Wonder Friend! Lots of Wonder Friends like using the listening feature near the top of the Wonder! We think so, too, Jake! They are very interesting to learn about! Hi, Marcsean! We hope you'll check out Wonder to learn about humans who lived long before us.

Welcome, Mrs. Thomas's Class! We love Wonder Wednesday and Wonder Walls. We encourage you to submit your Wonder questions to the Wonder Bank. Just click on "What are you wondering? You can also search for Wonders using the search box.

Thanks for the suggestion! We're glad you liked the Wonder! We hope you enjoy the rest of this Magnificent Monday! Thanks for sharing what you learned, Mrs. Davis' Class! We did a little extra digging, but weren't able to find how fast bats fly. We hope you'll embark on a Wonder Journey of your own to discover the answer and share it with us! Great Questions, Timothy!

We're sure it has something to do with the circulatory system of the bat that keeps them from passing out while hanging upside down. Bats are capable of climbing. Great question, Smile! This Wonder is about the animal, bats. However, we have a Wonder about baseball bats that you may be interested in checking out. Wonder Which Bat Is Best? Enjoy, Wonder Friend! Great question, POO! We know that when we hang upside-down for a long time, we get dizzy.

It is amazing that bats can sleep like that. Great question, Kahler! We're not sure why bats get itchy. We may have to create another Wonder to examine that question. Hi, David. These itchy bats were scratching themselves.

For another Wonder Video, please be sure to check out the Wonder Gallery on the right side of the page. We also think bats are fun to learn about! Instead, they can enter into flight with no effort if they start from hanging upside down rather than from a perched position.

Their knees face backwards, and they have special tendons that lock their toes in place, allowing them to hang freely while relaxed, National Geographic states. If they were to perch rather than hang, they would have to contract a muscle to begin flying, while hanging allows them to start flying without expending any energy.

The tendon that allows them to hang while relaxed is very effective, so much so that a bat will continue hanging upside down even after it dies, according to National Geographic. Let technology enhance your outdoor adventures with these apps recommended by Forest Preserve District interpretive naturalists. Read More. There's also little competition for these roosting spots, as other flying animals don't have the ability to hang upside down. If you want to clench your fist around an object, you must contract several muscles in your arm, which are connected to your fingers by tendons.

As one muscle contracts, it pulls a tendon, which pulls one of your fingers closed. A bat's talons close in the same way, except that their tendons are connected only to the upper body, not to a muscle. To hang upside down, a bat flies into position, pulls its claws open with other muscles and finds a surface to grip. To get the talons to grab hold of the surface, the bat simply lets its body relax. The weight of the upper body pulls down on the tendons connected to the talons, causing them to clench.

The talon joints lock into position, and the bat's weight keeps them closed. Consequently, the bat doesn't have to do anything to hang upside down. The only flying mammals. Nature found a way to evolve such an unlikely thing as a flying mammal, so some compromises had to be made.

Bats, once airborne, manage perfectly well in the air, and can literally fly circles around most birds in flight. The problem is in first getting off the ground. To compensate for the extra weight that mammals must have, to compensate for the problem of getting off the ground, evolution found another way for bats to transition from being motionless to immediately being able to fly when necessary.

That way they are immediately in the air, and all they need to do is start flapping. It was a great idea, as it turns out. They are mammals, not birds, so their musculature, their bones, and their tendons are set up in a completely different way. When a bird squats down on a branch, their tendons actually lock their toes into an even tighter grip on the perch.

It happens automatically. Bats, as mammals, are set up differently. That way, their tendons will actually pull their toes closed, just like a bird does from the opposite direction.