FAQs

Yes, but not in most of the United States. Of the three species of vampire bats in North America, only a single specimen has been recorded for the United States in extreme southwest Texas. Vampire bats do not suck blood--they make a small incision with their sharp front teeth and lap up the blood with their tongue. Vampire bats in Mexico and South America feed on the blood of livestock such as...

Bats are the most significant predators of night-flying insects. There are at least 40 different kinds of bats in the U.S. that eat nothing but insects. A single little brown bat, which has a body no bigger than an adult human’s thumb, can eat 4 to 8 grams (the weight of about a grape or two) of insects each night. Although this may not sound like much, it adds up—the loss of the one million bats...

All healthy bats try to avoid humans by taking flight and are not purposely aggressive. Most bats are about the size of a mouse and use their small teeth and weak jaws to grind up insects. You should avoid handling bats because several species, such as the hoary and big brown bats, have large teeth that can puncture skin if they are handled improperly. Less than one percent of the bat population...

Research suggests that even though amphibians are severely declining worldwide, there is no smoking gun—and thus no simple solution—to halting or reversing these declines. Though every region in the United States has suffered amphibian declines, threats differ among regions. They include: Human influence from the Mississippi River east, including the metropolitan areas of the Northeast and the...

Malformed frogs first came to national attention in 1995. Since that time, reports of malformed frogs and other amphibians have increased dramatically. Malformations have been reported in at least 44 states and in more than 50 species of frogs and toads. Multiple limbs, missing limbs, and facial abnormalities are the main malformations seen. Frog malformations are the result of environmental...

More than 6,000 amphibian species exist worldwide, with approximately 300 of them found in the United States. The USGS is the lead agency for the Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (ARMI) , a program of amphibian monitoring, research, and conservation that was established in response to the worldwide decline of amphibian species.

In response to indications of worldwide declines in amphibian populations, Interior Department agencies were directed to initiate a national program of amphibian monitoring, research, and conservation. There is an urgent need to determine the scope and severity of the problem and to investigate causes. As a result, the USGS formed the Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (ARMI). The main...

Although extinctions occur naturally, the current rate of plant and animal extinctions is much higher than the natural or historical rates. Habitat loss is the primary cause of higher extinction rates. Other causes include habitat changes, over-exploitation of wildlife for commercial purposes, the introduction of harmful nonnative species, pollution, and the spread of diseases. Learn more...

Finding the scientific name requires detective work, because there can be multiple common names that can vary geographically, and similar common names can refer to a variety of organisms. A good starting point is the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS), a database of scientific and common names and broad taxonomic categories.

Plants naturally grow in and around lakes, but sometimes lakes and ponds can get an overgrowth of plants, algae, or bacteria. In many cases, humans are responsible. Chemicals that are used on lawns and in agriculture (like nitrogen and potassium) wash into our water systems. Once there, plants and algae have a feast on this “food”. Sometimes overgrowths of cyanobacteria (called “blooms”) can make...