The "common vampire bat" is a small, leaf-nosed bat native to the Americas. It is one of three extant species of vampire bat, the other two being the hairy-legged and the white-winged vampire bats. These species are the only known parasitic mammals. The common vampire bat mainly feeds on the blood of livestock, approaching its prey at night while they are sleeping. It uses its razor-sharp teeth to cut open the skin of its hosts and laps up their blood with its long tongue. The species is highly polygynous, and dominant adult males defend harems of females. It is one of the most social of bat species with a number of cooperative behaviors such as alloparenting, social grooming and food sharing. Because it feeds on livestock and is a carrier of rabies, the common vampire bat is considered a pest. Its conservation status is categorized as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature because of "its wide distribution, presumed large population tolerance of a degree of habitat modification, and because it is unlikely to be declining at nearly the rate required to qualify for listing in a threatened category." The common vampire bat was first classified as "Phyllostoma rotundum" by Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire in 1810. The species received several scientific names before being given its current one—"Desmodus rotundus"—by Oldfield Thomas in 1901. It is classified under the subfamily Desmodontinae along with two other species: the hairy-legged vampire bat , and the white-winged vampire bat . These three species compose the "true" vampire bats, as opposed to the "false" vampires of the family Megadermatidae and the spectral bat. All three species of Desmodontinae specialize in feeding on the blood of warm-blooded animals. However, the common vampire bat feeds on mammalian blood more than the other two species, which primarily feed on that of birds. The three species resemble each other, but the common vampire bat can be distinguished by its longer thumb. It is the only extant member of its genus, although other fossil species have been described. Wiz Science™ is "the" learning channel for children and all ages. SUBSCRIBE TODAY Disclaimer: This video is for your information only. The author or publisher does not guarantee the accuracy of the content presented in this video. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Background Music: "The Place Inside" by Silent Partner (royalty-free) from YouTube Audio Library. This video uses material/images from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common+vampire+bat, which is released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ . This video is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ . To reuse/adapt the content in your own work, you must comply with the license terms.

• published: 13 Aug 2015
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