collar upon the part bitten
in the case of horses and mules, or of the shoe in the human patient.
That the Desmodonts do really feed on blood is proved by evidence of
various kinds. They have been captured in the act of blood-sucking,
when their stomachs, which are peculiarly constructed and very long,
are found filled with a black paste, which is evidently half-digested
blood; and their teeth, which are in part so well adapted for
producing the necessary wounds in other animals, are totally unfit for
the mastication of an insect prey, such as constitutes the diet of
their nearest allies.

[Illustration: THE VAMPIRE BAT.]

After all this feeding, Bats, whatever the nature of their diet, not
unnaturally find themselves inclined for repose, and as they are
active during the night or in the twilight, of course their rest has
to be taken in the daytime. To pass the period of repose in security
they seek shelter of various kinds, not only for protection against
the weather, but also for the sake of concealment from other
predaceous animals, some of which would no doubt be perfectly willing
to make a meal of them. The great Eastern Fruit Bats, trusting perhaps
to their size and strength, are content to resort to the branches of
trees, from which, after the manner of Bats in general, they suspend
themselves by the hind feet with the head downwards. From the
statements of various writers it appears that after being out all
night in search of food, the Flying Foxes and other allied Bats fly
back to their regular resting-places, where they begin to arrive about
or soon after dawn. The number resorting to the same retreat is
usually so great that the whole of the branches are loaded with them,
and in fact they are so crowded together that the settling down of the
flock into their repose is preceded by a scene of squabbling and
quarrelling of the most noisy description. Mr. Tickell, speaking of
the common Indian Flying Fox, says:--"From the arrival of the first
comer, until the sun is high above the horizon, a scene of incessant
wrangling and contention is enacted among them, as each endeavors to
secure a higher and better place, or to eject a neighbor from too
close vicinage. In these struggles the Bats hook themselves along the
branches, scrambling about hand over hand with some speed, biting each
other severely, striking out with the long claw of the thumb,
shrieking and cackling without intermission. Each new arrival is
com