Mammals
Sucker-footed Bat
Myzopoda aurita · also called Old World sucker-footed bat
Pressed flat against the smooth inner curl of a traveler’s palm leaf, a sucker-footed bat grips on with adhesive pads on its wrists and ankles, a trick evolved entirely independently from a distant, unrelated bat family that solved the exact same problem half a world away.
Overview
The sucker-footed bat, Myzopoda aurita, is endemic to rainforest habitat across Madagascar. Its convergently evolved adhesive grip, dependence on a single host plant for shelter, and restriction to a single island make it one of the more specialised and vulnerable bats found anywhere.
Two unrelated bats, one identical solution
Separated by an ocean and millions of years of independent evolution, the sucker-footed bat and the distantly related disk-winged bat of the Americas arrived at nearly the same anatomical answer to the same problem, a textbook example of convergent evolution playing out in real time.
Status
Near Threatened, with a population declining due to the loss of Madagascar’s forest habitat and the traveler’s palm populations it depends on for roosting.
Sucker-footed Bat: common questions
Is the sucker-footed bat related to the disk-winged bat?
No, despite both having adhesive pads on their wrists and ankles, the two are not closely related; the similarity is a striking example of convergent evolution, with each family independently arriving at the same solution for clinging to smooth leaves.
What does the sucker-footed bat use its adhesive pads for?
It uses them to cling securely to the smooth inner surface of a rolled traveler's palm leaf, the specific plant it depends on for daytime shelter.
Why is the sucker-footed bat considered Near Threatened?
Its population is declining due to the loss of Madagascar's forest habitat and the traveler's palm populations it specifically depends on for roosting.
Where is the sucker-footed bat found?
It is endemic to Madagascar, found nowhere else in the world.