Contributed by Ginny Dalton, Bat Biologist
Q. How many saguaro flowers does a bat have to visit to sustain it
for one day?
A. According to my calculations, 21 flowers.* This is because
a bat needs 20,200 calories per day and there are 960 calories
in each flower. (20,200 calories/day divided by 960 calories per
flower = 21 flowers)
Q. For how many minutes does a bat have to forage to get the
nectar it needs each day?
A. The way I figure it, about 1 hour and 45 minutes flight
time.
Here's why: It takes 10 visits per flower to get the 960 calories available. Since the bat must visit 21 separate flowers in a day, that's 210 total visits. (21 x 10 = 210). Now, since 210 visits are required, and each visit takes 30 seconds, that's 6,300 seconds or about 1 hr and 45 min flight time. (210 x 30 = 6,300 seconds. 6,300 seconds divided by 60 seconds per minute = 105 minutes, which is about 1 hour and 45 minutes.)
Q. How many saguaro plants do you think would be needed to feed
a maternity colony of 10,000 Leptos?
A.
Want another challenge? Use the figure of 295 flowers per plant per
nearly 2-month season and see if you can answer: Q. What is the minimum
number of hectares of land required to feed a bat colony containing 10,000
pregnant bats?
A. ?
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