Searching for the Vampire Bat

Deep in the Mayan forests of Mexico lives the rarely-seen Vampyrum spectrum-the false vampire bat. Little is known about these carnivorous mammals, as their nocturnal lifestyle and remote habitats make them exceedingly difficult to study.
That didn’t deter biologist Rodrigo Medellin and photographer Anand Varma. In Jason Jaacks’s short documentary, In Search of Tzotz, Medellin, Professor of Ecology at the University of Mexico, and Varma, on assignment for National Geographic, spent months scouring ancient ruins and labyrinthine caves in the Yucatan for traces of the mysterious winged creatures, whom the Maya called Tzotz.
“Through Dr. Medellin's research and Anand's incredible visual storytelling skills, we witnessed several new behaviors never before seen by science,” Jaacks told The Atlantic. “We spent quite a bit of time crammed in a small tunnel inside an 800-year-old Mayan temple, in near-pitch darkness, filming the False Woolly Vampire bat roost. To hear a bat with a 2.5-foot wingspan fly over you in tight quarters was utterly amazing...Being in the presence of these bats is an awe-inspiring feeling.”
"In Search of Tzotz" was directed by Jason Jaacks. It is part of The Atlantic Selects, an online showcase of short documentaries from independent creators, curated by The Atlantic.
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[@10xthehedgehog86]

Oh hey look it's goth

[@goblinmilcc5863]

Oh my gods , you’ve read the book “ Silverwing “ by Kenneth Oppel ?

[@st0rmfe4ther33]

@@goblinmilcc5863 LOL just finished Firewing last night, sad ending but still really good

[@dynastywarriorlord07]

Would Achilles Graywing be a match for Throbb I wonder. The strongest Graywing vs the weakest spectral bat

[@KingCasual1986]

@@st0rmfe4ther33 Firewing was honestly kind of boring compared to the awesomeness that is Sunwing.

[@emmateeling9277]

Completely fantastic!

[@cerdic6867]

He looks like Bob Mortimer

[@annamae4042]

had to hang a picture of him upside down to see it, but you're right!

[@robwalsh9843]

Apparently, spectral bats have proportionately stronger bites than those of canines, bears or cats.

[@Jazzy459]

One is passionate about bats, the other photography, and both inspire the same passions in you through this amazing video!

[@blakewangler230]

Very true carnivorous bats are amazing

[@mayukhchakraborty5087]

Kudos to the Nat Geo photographer, Awesome work ethics.

[@paulw.9669]

Two species of False Vampire Bat, not to be confused with the ones we get it parts of Australia; different family, similar ecological niche.

[@TheShree909]

There is also s greater noctule bat which is also large.

[@expressiveshootinganddestr5008]

bats will go after lone vehicles.

[@TheShree909]

Spectral bat is not a top predator. It's being preyed upon by barn owl.

[@zooemperor3954]

shree hari that was one individual and it might have been a juvenile. Plus, the two don’t have the same habitat.

[@bardiabasiri3857]

They have no regular predators, or at least not to my knowledge.

[@michael-cd9dw]

I have always been drawn to bats ever since I arrived out of my mother's womb .