Protocol

Feeding Short-Tailed Fruit Bats (Carollia perspicillata)

¹ Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, State University of New York Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY 11203, USA
² Department of Biological Sciences, Idaho State University, Pocatello, ID 83209, USA
³ Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA

⁴Corresponding author (rrb{at}mdanderson.org)

This article is also available in Emerging Model Organisms: A Laboratory Manual, Vol. 1. CSHL Press, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA, 2009.

INTRODUCTION

The short-tailed fruit bat Carollia perspicillata is predominantly frugivorous in the wild and will therefore accept a variety of non-citrus fruits in captivity (e.g., bananas, apples, melon, and peaches). To promote cage cleanliness, however, these bats are routinely fed a fruit-based liquid diet that cannot be carried away from the food dishes. By intention, this diet is simple and inexpensive to prepare, and it can also be prepared in advance and refrigerated or frozen for later use. This protocol describes the preparation and storage of the diet, as well as the feeding of the bats.