Flight in Bats

The bat's body is adapted to flight:

• The bat has a high metabolic rate, allowing it to sustain a high level of activity for long periods of time.
• The body is compact and keeps the center of mass forward and the body level.
• The neck is short and the chest is big, with powerfully developed muscles
• The abdomen is narrow and tapering, giving the bat and ideal shape.
• The wings provide a strong and flexible airfoil that can change shape.

The wing movements of a bat in flight follow this sequence:

• Downstroke:
  • at the starting position the wings are extended fully, palms down
  • then the wings are pushed down and forward until the bat is in a curved position after which the wrists tilt the wing upwards.

• Upstroke:
  • the wings pull up, folding inward to lessen drag.
  • they then open to the starting position again.

The downstroke provides the power for flight, and is powered by contraction of three large muscles on the bat's upper arms and chest. The upstroke is powered by three smaller muscles on the back.

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*Thanks to Liz Stockwell , and to the Museum of Paleontology at U.C. Berkeley for information used in this page.