The three species of vampire bats are the only mammals that have evolved to feed exclusively on blood ( hematophagy) as micropredators, a strategy within parasitism. Vampire bats are in a diverse family of bats that consume many food sources, including nectar, pollen, insects, fruit and meat. Desmodus puntajudensis ( Desmodus rotundus puntajudensis) extinct,.The placement of the three genera of the subfamily Desmodontinae within the New World leaf-nosed bat family Phyllostomidae Gray, 1825, may be summarized as:
That suggests that hematophagy evolved only once, and the three species share this common ancestor. The three known species of vampire bats all seem more similar to one another than to any other species. In the older literature, these three genera were placed within a family of their own, Desmodontidae, but taxonomists have now grouped them as a subfamily, Desmodontinae, in the New World leaf-nosed bat family, Phyllostomidae. All three species are native to the Americas, ranging from Mexico to Brazil, Chile, Uruguay and Argentina.ĭue to differences among the three species, each has been placed within a different genus, each consisting of one extant species. Three extant bat species feed solely on blood: the common vampire bat ( Desmodus rotundus), the hairy-legged vampire bat ( Diphylla ecaudata), and the white-winged vampire bat ( Diaemus youngi).
Their food source is blood of other animals, a dietary trait called hematophagy. Vampire bats, species of the subfamily Desmodontinae, are leaf-nosed bats found in Central and South America. For the 2005 television film, see Vampire Bats (film).
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