Jamaican Fruit-eating Bat

Artibeus jamaicensis

Safety note: May carry rabies — do not approach or handle.

The Jamaican Fruit-eating Bat is one of the most ecologically important bats of tropical North America, serving as a primary seed disperser for dozens of tree species. It plucks ripe figs and other fruits, carries them away from the parent tree, and drops the seeds, contributing substantially to forest regeneration. This bat is common throughout Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America.

Habitat

Tropical forests, forest edges, and gardens

Diet

Fruit, especially figs, and occasional insects and nectar

How common

Uncommon

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