Big Tasty, a photo from Zuid Holland, Zuid

Photographer's Note

Rousettus aegyptiacus (Egyptian Fruit bat)
Distribution: Cyprus, Egypt. Israel, Lebanon. Syria, Turkey.

The genus Rousettus includes 9 species. This bat is very common throughout its range and is well represented in zoological collections across North America. The Egyptian fruit bat is one of the few megachiropteran species to live in caves. The Egyptian fruit bat roosts in the twilight area of caves and as a result has evolved a very primitive form of echolocation. The Egyptian fruit bat has a wingspan of two feet (0.6m) and weighs approximately five ounces (150g). Egyptian fruit bats reach sexual maturity at about 9 months of age and have a gestation period of approximately 120 days after which a single pup is born.

The Egyptian fruit bat's natural food consists of fruits, pollen, nectar and other plant parts. In captivity it is fed a variety of commercially available fruits, vegetables and Lubee's fruit bat supplement.

About the picture, I take it in the Rotterdam Zoo "Blijdorp" and I only crop the picture.

davecall, Liora, kri54 heeft deze opmerking als nuttig gemarkeerd

Critiques | Translate

davecall (575) 2004-05-30 5:25

This is a good photo for many reasons, but what I think makes it especially interesting is that vivid dash of orange. I also like the way you've shown the bat grasping onto his food, and we get to see a bit of his facial profile and those needle-like teeth. Finally, I think the composition, in which we get to see the whole bat as well as details of how he is fed at the top of the photo and of his orange at the bottom, has been well constructed. Great effort Peter!

galidana (351) 2004-05-30 5:41

Lovely picture, full of expression. I like these yellow and gray colors on the black background. The viewer really can feel the pleasure of the bat:-)

Liora (1857) 2004-05-30 11:13