Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls…
I present to you… (drumroll)…
The Bumblebee Bat
(aka Kitti’s Hog-nosed Bat)!
(Craseonycteris thonglongyai – a big name for a little bat)
The smallest mammal in the world is the bumblebee bat (Craseonycteris thonglongyai), weighing in at just barely 2 grams – about the weight of a penny! – and measuring 1 to 1.2 inches (3 cm) in length – about the size of a large bumblebee (hence the name).
(The world’s smallest [and most adorable] mammal)
OK… once you get over the unbelievable cuteness of this little thing, one question should immediately leap to mind.
Who’s Kitti? And how did he get a bat? OK, that was two questions. But still…
The bumblebee bat was discovered in 1974 by Thai zoologist Kitti Thonglongya. This helps explain the ‘Kitti’ in Kitti’s Hog-nosed Bat. Kitti’s surname also helps explain the second half of this itsy-bitsy bat’s ludicrously long name. The ‘hog-nosed’ part is because of its pink, pig-like snout. As for the first half of the name, if the word Craseonycteris doesn’t seem to ring a bell with you, don’t feel too bad. This little critter is the only member of that genus. It is also the only member of the family Craseonycteridae. Lovely but lonely.
The world’s most darling chiropter does everything a regular bat does. The only thing that separates it from the others is its tiny size. Very rare and hard to find (well done, Kitti!), these little bats hover like humming birds and dwell deep in caves feeding on insects.
(Is that a bat on your thumb or are you just happy to see me?)
The winsome winged wonder has a reddish-brown or grey coat, with a distinctive pig-like snout (see mug shot above). Colonies range greatly in size, with an average of 100 individuals per cave. Bumblebee bats occupy limestone caves along rivers. The bat feeds during short activity periods in the evening and dawn, foraging around nearby forest areas for insects. Females give birth annually to a single offspring.
Although the bat’s status in south-east Myanmar (Burma) is not well-known, the Thai population is restricted to a single province in western Thailand and may be at risk for extinction. Its potential threats are primarily anthropogenic (i.e. it’s our fault), and include habitat degradation and the disturbance of roosting sites. The bumblebee bat’s habitat is being destroyed (big surprise) by deforestation and tourism, leading the International Union for Conservation of Nature to classify the little sweetie-pie as endangered.
I hope the future is kind to this marvel of nature. What a crime it would be if there wasn’t enough room in the world for something so tiny yet so wonderful.
Hi! I work with WWF Sweden’s children member magazine PANDA and we are interested in one of the images showed above. Please contact me. Thank you!
Will do! 🙂
So cute
Thanks, Isaiah! 🙂
where do i get one? i want one soooo bad!!!!
I don’t think even the Myanmar or Thailand PetSmart will have them. They are an endangered species, I think. Still… maybe they should start cloning the little darlings! 🙂
Selling them for pets might be the best way to save them from extinction! They are so cute. And that is from some one who really don’t like bats for pets,(flyingfox,s & bumblebee bats) the exception
i dont think keeping them as a pet would be fair i say if u find one give it to the wildlife center nere u or just release it in a protected park
Please let me know where you found the image of the bat on a finger. I’m very interested in contacting the photographer about including this in my forthcoming book for children. I’m the author of over 200 books for children. I will GREATLY value your help!
Sandra Markle
Hello, Sandra… I don’t remember where I found the image of the bat on a finger but I do know that dozens of different sites have used it. If you do a Google images search under that photo, you get a lot of results…
Here’s a sample…
http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&safe=off&sa=G&gbv=2&q=kitti's+hog+nosed+bat&tbm=isch&tbs=simg:CAQSYxphCxCo1NgEGgAMCxCwjKcIGjwKOggBEhSjBKYEkAevA6UD5gOsA6QDsAOTBxog09s1Sq-otGXUV_1nai6PUpdijm11mmYL2xy1_1rIT3kIcMCxCOrv4IGgoKCAgBEgRougU_1DA&biw=1280&bih=911
If you do find who took that photo, please let me know. I like to give credit where credit is due.
Good luck! 🙂
Can you tell me about their life cycle and why are they called Kitti’s Hog-Nosed Bats?
As the article states, “The bumblebee bat was discovered in 1974 by Thai zoologist Kitti Thonglongya. This helps explain the ‘Kitti’ in Kitti’s Hog-nosed Bat. Kitti’s surname also helps explain the second half of this itsy-bitsy bat’s ludicrously long name.” (Craseonycteris thonglongyai)
Also, the article states, “The bat feeds during short activity periods in the evening and dawn, foraging around nearby forest areas for insects. Females give birth annually to a single offspring.”
I hope this helps.
OMG!!! That is the CUTEST thing I’ve ever SEEN!!! Man, that would be an awesome little critter to have around – wonder if they would be amenable to living inside a house and eating the various bugs – we have craploads of cockroaches hatching out all the time – I imagine they would feed a bat nicely! 🙂 Hehe. Of course, I doubt they’re anywhere near where I am! 🙂
Hi Katy… Yes, cute pretty well sums up the little critter, doesn’t it? 🙂 Bumblebee Bats make lousy housepets. They prefer limestone caves near rivers in western Thailand and south-east Myanmar. So yeah, that may be a bit of a trek from where you are! Still… they sure are adorable!
Hi,
I would greatly appreciate being able to be in touch with you about the source of your photo for the bumblebee bat. I’m the author of a number of books on science topics for children and currently working on one about bats called BATS: BIGGEST! LITTLEST! I want to include this bat. Please email me at sandramarkle@yahoo.com
THANK YOU!!
Can you please tell me more about the Kitti Hog-Nosed bat? I find it so intresting! :]
5 Stars! 😀
Hi Tyler. Thank you for your interest in this little critter. Unfortunately, I am not a chiropterologist. I pretty much gave you in the article just about all I know on the subject. I am sure if you did a Google search, you would come up with all sorts of interesting things about the Bumble Bee Bat than I have here.
I have loved bats since I was little and in particular the bumblebee bat! What darling creatures these are.
Bumblebee bats are little darlings, for sure! 🙂
Are you sure that last picture is of a Kitty’s? It looks very much like a pipistrelle. Were you luck enough to see a wild Kitty’s?
I am not a chiropterologist, so I wouldn’t know for sure whether it is a pipistrelle or not. The article from which I took that photo said it was a Kitti’s and so I took them at their word. And no, I have never had the pleasure of seeing a Kitti’s in the wild. I have never been to southeast Asia. I understand that even in the wild, they are rare.
Hello, My name is Rob Baker and I am a Graphic Designer for a non-profit organization called Apologetics Press. We produce a monthly magazine for kids called “Discovery.’ I would like to see if I could use one of the images on your post. We are doing an article about the “Kitti’s hog-nosed bat.”
Thanks
Hi Rob.
I do not own the copyright in any of the photographs used in this blog article. I got them through a Google Image search. There were many other sites that used the same images. I get a lot of requests to reproduce images from my blog articles and I always have to say the same thing… they’re not mine. I wish I knew who held the copyrights for them but I don’t. Let’s put this this way… I can’t give away something that’s not mine. I can tell you that very many people are using these images. Please feel free to use the literary content from my article, so long as you credit me for the words (not the images). Good luck and let me know how it goes.
Daniel Ventresca (the Kosher Samurai)
Thank you for your response.
Rob
Very unique pictures of those small animals..Amazing post.Thank you for visiting my site.Cheers.Jalal
Thank you for your kind words. 🙂
I wanna tickle it!
He’s so fluffy I’m gonna die!
This fascinating little bat was the subject of a quiz question on the British show ‘The Chase’
It’s a star!! 🙂
Reblogged this on koshersamurai and commented:
Reblogging one of my most popular blogs from last year. Enjoy!
I’ll never fall in love even with such a sweetie bat, but it should have its own niche on planet earth ( including snakes , aaaaaaargh ! ! Phobic)
Awww.. that’s OK, Ren. Even though you don’t love the little cutie pie, it’s nice to know it should have its own little cave somewhere in Thailand where no one will hurt it. May we all be allowed to have our own little place to live, free from harm. Happy New Year, Ren. All the best to you, now and throughout the year! 🙂
I want one!!!!
Aren’t they the best? They’re too cute for words! 🙂
such a interesting animal please save this
Well written blog post – more entertaining (less dry) than many of the other bumblebee bat articles I just read. One point, though: Kitti Thonglongya was a he, not a she.
D’oh! I did not know that. Thanks for the heads up. I corrected the error.
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i found one in my backyard
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