Brandt's bat

Fascinating facts about the Brandt's bat

• A Brandt's bat born in 1960 was still alive in 2017 — making her 56 years old and the oldest bat on record. Most mammals her size (3 to 5 grams, lighter than a penny) live 4 to 5 years. She lived 10 times longer. Scientists still don't know why some bats age so slowly, but Brandt's bats seem to have cracked a code that keeps their cells young for decades.
• Brandt's bats navigate and hunt in total darkness by making 10 to 20 ultrasonic clicks every second, listening as the echoes bounce back from flying insects. The clicks are so fast and precise they can detect a single mosquito-sized insect from 5 metres away. What's strange: they can also *hear* insects that don't echo back, sensing the tiny sounds the insects themselves make — a hunting technique called passive listening that lets them eavesdrop on dinner.
• A single Brandt's bat will eat roughly 500 to 1000 insects in one night — mostly mosquitoes, midges, and small flies. Over a summer, one bat removes thousands of insects from the air that would otherwise bite humans or damage crops. Yet in just 6 months of hibernation they can lose 25% of their body weight, living on stored fat reserves in the cold. The math is brutal: hunt hard in summer or starve in winter.
• Brandt's bats gather in caves and abandoned mines in groups of thousands, clustering so densely that their bodies touch. This isn't just shelter — it's a heating system. When temperatures plummet, they huddle together and their collective body warmth keeps the whole group alive. A bat alone in winter cold would burn its stored fat in days. In a cluster, they survive months.
• The DNA of Brandt's bats carries genes for repairing damaged cells that most mammals lost millions of years ago. They also have genes that suppress tumour growth far more aggressively than humans do. Scientists studying their genomes have found clues to why they resist cancer and age slowly — answers that could one day reshape how we think about aging and disease in our own species.

At a glance

About the Brandt's bat

In the velvety blackness of a summer evening, the Brandt's bat emerges, its delicate silhouette etched against the sky as it embarks on a whirlwind hunt for insects, its leathery wings beating at a hypnotic pace. With an agility that belies its tiny frame, this diminutive creature dances through the air, its high-pitched calls piercing the night as it navigates the intricate web of sound and shadow. As it flits and weaves, the Brandt's bat embodies the very essence of nocturnal magic, a whispered promise of wonder in the darkest hours.

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