Mammals have conquered most habitats and spread across the entire planet. They inhabit the oceans, were originally found on all continents except Antarctica, and some have acquired the ability to fly.
The largest known animal in evolutionary history is a mammal: the blue whale. And thanks to the enormous diversity of mammals, there are also some exceptionally small species.
The title of smallest mammal is contested by two species. When adult, specimens of both species can weigh less than two grams, although an individual within the species shows greater variation and can weigh up to three grams.
Bumblebee bat
The bumblebee bat, whose scientific name is Craseonycteris thonglongyaiWhen fully grown, it measures just over 29 mm from nose to tail. Its wingspan is 145 mm. They typically weigh between 1.6 and 2 grams, less than a US cent or a Euro cent.
This detail makes the bumblebee bat look so adorable and is the smallest mammal on earth.
Bumblebee bats have gray-brown fur on their backs and a light gray belly; His wings are almost transparent. They have long snouts with antenna-like projections that allow them to track down prey. Like other bats, they have excellent eyesight and hearing.
Their large ears and nostrils help them find flying insects in the dark. They are insectivores and their feeding range extends for miles around their burrows. Flights are short, lasting less than an hour, at dusk, sunset and dawn. Like many other bats, it hunts flying insects by echolocation.
The population increases during the dry season. Each female gives birth to one young, which remains attached to the mother and clings to a nipple in the pubic area.
Where can you find the smallest mammal?
They live in the tropical forests of Thailand and Burma, in warm, moist limestone caves and in man-made structures such as temples and mines and eat insects. Herds of hundreds of individuals cling to cave ceilings and rock crevices.
These bats are very sociable and gather in groups while sleeping. Their small size means they can fit in a handful of palm-sized specimens. By staying close together, they can regulate body temperature and humidity. It also allows them to take advantage of the safety benefits that come from living in larger numbers and detecting predators early enough.
Human threat
This amazing and unique species faces several threats from humans that could lead to its extinction.
On the one hand, their caves are used as places for tourist excursions or for religious events where incense is burned, which has an important influence on these small bats.
In some places, bat guano is also used directly as a source of fertilizer or limestone, leading to degradation of their habitat.
These disturbances are considered the greatest anthropogenic threat to the world's smallest mammal.
Eight of the caves are in the city of Burma, which is estimated to be home to fewer than 4,000 people. In Thailand, in turn, they are observed in 44 caves, the total population of which is less than 6,500 individuals.
Due to their limited habitat and small population size, they are classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Its population is declining at an alarming rate.
The Etruscan shrew binds weight
Much more common and numerous is the Etruscan shrew (Suncus etruscus), competitor to the bumblebee bat in the category of lightest known mammal.
Weighing 1.7 to 3 grams, this animal usually receives a silver medal, although some adult bumblebees sometimes weigh more than some bumblebee species.
However, it is certainly a larger animal; Excluding the tail, the size of the Etruscan shrew is between 35 and 50 mm.
Its range extends from Burma and Thailand, where it shares its habitat with bumblebee bats, to much of the Mediterranean basin, including the Italian and Iberian peninsulas, with the exception of the northwest quadrant. It lives in temperate, Mediterranean and tropical forests.
They refer to the rural population where they exploit abandoned crops.
They are solitary creatures and only accept the presence of other members of their species for reproductive purposes. The female's gestation period lasts 26 to 28 days and she gives birth to 2 to 7 babies weighing only 0.2 grams, which are cared for and fed by the mother for three weeks. A week after weaning, the babies are forced to become independent because they are hated by their mother, who sees them as her rivals.
With information from:
