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Article: Dangerous creatures
- Article from:
- Natural History
- Article date:
- September 1, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright American Museum of Natural History Sep 1996. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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CD-ROM With just under 900 species, bats make up about one-quarter of all living mammals, a diversity exceeded only by that of rodents. And while mammals are typically classified as either predators or prey, only among bats do we find a species that qualifies for the unusual title of parasite: the vampire bat of Central and South America. Specializing in domestic animals, a vampire uses four razorsharp canine teeth to make a small incision on a part of its host where blood vessels lie close to the skin-such as the ear-and laps up blood with its grooved tongue. Surprisingly, the fictional vampire made infamous by Bram Stoker's Dracula predates the discovery of the blood-lapping mammal. In ...