List of the Fauna of the County. 161
delicate, and soon died; perhaps they required aquatic
insects, or it may be they could not bear confinement. The
whole family appear equally unfitted for close confinement,
and I find great difficulty in keeping bats alive for any
considerable length of time.
V. mystacinus. Whiskered Bat.—This, again, is much
more common than is generally believed; I have no diffi-
culty in finding all that I have required for the purposes of
study. Its flight is very similar to that of the Pipistrelle;
like that bat it hawks under the shelter of a hedge or row of
trees, and I have no doubt is constantly passed over by those
seeking it as the commoner species. Buildings appear to be
its usual habitat.
Plecotus auritus. Long-eared Bat.—There is no diffi-
culty in distinguishing this common bat: the remarkable
ears, as long as the body, cause it to be unmistakable. There
is no animal in existence, so far as I know, with ears in this
proportion, except a long-eared bat, P. homochrous, which
occurs in the Himalayas, and it is questionable whether this
latter is a true species; if it is only a variety, then the
animal under consideration is, in respect of ears, unique.
Although the ears are so large, they do not strike one as
being so disproportionate as those of the lop-eared rabbit,
which are really small by comparison. Plecotus auritus is
very common in the Colchester district, and usually has its
haunts in buildings, although I have had them brought me
from hollow trees. It is a mild and gentle creature, and not
difficult to tame. It is the bat most frequently caught in
houses, having entered the room by the open window, often
much to the consternation of female members of the
household.
Barbastellus Daubentonii. The Barbastelle.—I have
found this bat early in April flitting slowly, and in an
apparently purposeless manner, near the ground, under
the protection of a plantation ; and this style of flight is one
means by which it may be distinguished. Its dark colour
makes it appear much larger than it really is; and now that
I have learned to recognise it I do not consider it so rare as
U