Artibeus lituratus
Silhouette: Jorge D. Carballo-Morales, based on a photo by Mario Barroso · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
The great fruit-eating bat (Artibeus lituratus) is a bat species found from Mexico to Brazil and Argentina, as well as in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Grenada, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago.
They weigh 10.5 grams (0.37 oz) at birth and grow to 65 grams (2.3 oz) as adults. The heart of A. lituratus contains unique membranous structures not seen in any other mammal. The functions of these differences are still being studied, but may possibly aid in keeping the heart in the correct position while upside down, flight assistance, and energy reservation.
In Panama, it has been found that some Artibeus lituratus fly with 18-23g fruits of Dipteryx panamensis (Fabaceae), which is a third of the animal's body weight, up to hundreds of meters from the parent tree. Reproductive damage within A. lituratus has been linked with the insecticide deltamethrin. Wikipedia →
Recording0:28
Mexico · 2020
© phoenixchaman · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Corcovado National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 2 | Soberanía National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 3 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cali | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 2 | Belo Horizonte | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 4 | Rio de Janeiro | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Great Fruit-eating Bat sighting in Soberanía National Park on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 35th most-seen of the 36 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April, July and November–December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Great Fruit-eating Bat in Soberanía National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January–March, May–June and August–October, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Great Fruit-eating Bat sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.
Among the best
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Great Fruit-eating Bat sightings, Soberanía National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Corcovado National Park (Costa Rica, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Great Fruit-eating Bat is recorded against all the mammals logged in Soberanía National Park (5 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
