Tag Japan

Fruity floof

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week! Since the Japanese cherry blossoms are blooming in Washington, DC, I thought that I would write about a bat from Japan. I found an adorable fruit bat called the Mariana fruit bat. The Mariana fruit bat has dark brown to black fur covering most of its body with grey hairs throughout and a beautiful gold or pail brown neck floof. Mariana fruit bats live in tropical and subtropical climates of Japan, Guam and in the Marina islands. They like to roost in limestone forests, coconut groves, and vegetation. During the day they mostly sleep but they also groom, fly around, and climb around. They usually leave their roost to get dinner around sunset. Since these bats are fruit bats, they like to munch on fruit and occasionally flowers and leaves. Sadly, these bats are endangered. This is due to habitat loss caused by timber removal, natural disasters, and habitat destruction caused by non-native animals. They have also been hunted and killed as a crop pest. If you’d like to read more about these bats, you can read about them here.

A magical land where foxes fly and bats are frosted!

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week! I have been enjoying the Olympics again this week. It has been fun to watch the ice skating, ice dancing, and skiing. Just like bats, I think there are some sports that aren’t getting nearly enough attention. For example, curling…what exactly is it? Since the Olympics are almost over, I’m starting to look forward to the 2020 Summer Olympics. They will be held in Tokyo, Japan. Japan has many different species of bats. They have both insectivore bats and fruit bats. The frosted myotis bat is a vesper bat that only lives in Japan. From its description, I think it must be an adorable little bat, but unfortunately, I was unable to find a picture of the little guy. Its back fur is brown with frosted tips and its stomach is a little lighter. It has velvety soft fur. The frosted myotis is very similar to the Yanbaru whiskered bat and the Burmese whiskered bat. It wasn’t discovered until 1969. This little bat likes to roost in tree hollows and is found in the mountain forests of lower elevations. Since it only lives on the islands of Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu, this bat isn’t very common. It is listed as endangered. If you would like to read more about this little bat, you can find some information here. Another bat found in Japan is the Bonin flying fox. Other names for this bat are the Bonin fruit bat and the Ogasawara giant bat. This beautiful bat lives in the subtropical forests of the islands of Chichijima, Hahajima, North Iwo Jima, and South Iwo Jima. Its fur is mostly black and brown and it has some silver-tipped hairs mixed in. The hair around its head, neck, and shoulders is frizzy. They […]