Bats in November

With regard to Cliff's comment about bats flying at this time of year - they probably had a hard time over the past couple of months trying to fatten up for hibernation. The cold and/or wet weather meant few insects flying in the evenings and hence the spate of reports about bats flying during the day a few weeks ago. Any bats that haven't reached hibernation weight will still be trying to feed up at any opportunity.

Bats can go into torpor at any time of year to save energy when it is cold or wet - could be for just hours, or perhaps days at a time. If warmer winters mean that insects are flying during winter, then bats can stay relatively active too. However, mammals that hibernate live much much longer than mammals of a similar size that don't hibernate, and I suspect that the longevity of bats (10-30 years depending on species) would decrease if they were active all year round. I don't have any information to hand on tropical bats that don't hibernate to compare - and this applies to only insectivorous bats, not fruit bats.