habitat_narrative
Terrestrial
Very little is known about the natural history of this species and there are few museum specimens available. All of the localities from which they have been collected are arid with a mean annual rainfall of less than 100 mm (Skinner & Chimimba 2005). Specimens have been netted in riverine vegetation along dry river beds (Seamark & Kearney 2006) or close to open water (ACR 2015).The Angolan Hairy Bat has short and broad wings with low wing loading (5.7 N.m-2) and low aspect ratio (6.9) (Schoeman & Jacobs 2008). This species is an insectivorous, clutter-edge forager. Diptera, Trichoptera, Hemiptera and Coleoptera were recorded in their diet in Goodhouse (Northern Cape Province) (Schoeman 2006). Roberts (1951) observed the species circling low around trees and bushes, snatching insects from leaves at dusk.
Ecosystem and cultural services: As this species is insectivorous, it plays an important role in controlling insect populations (Boyles et al. 2011; Kunz et al. 2011). Bats often prey on the insect species which destroy crops (Boyles et al. 2011; Kunz et al. 2011). Ensuring a healthy population of insectivorous bats can thus result in a decrease in the use of pesticides.
