What Is the Lifespan of a Vampire Bat?

Woodland Park Zoo reports the common vampire bat to be one of three types of vampire bats, the others being the white-winged vampire bat and the hairy-legged vampire bat. The common vampire bat is reported to make up around 99 percent of the total vampire bat population in the world.

  1. Lifespan

    • The vampire bat is reported by Woodland Park Zoo to live in its natural habitat of subtropical and tropical South American countries such as Chile and Argentina. It lives for around nine years.

    Captivity

    • According to Philadelphia Zoo, the vampire bat can live in the captivity of a zoo environment for much longer than in the wild, with an average life in captivity of around 20 years.

    Groups

    • Although the common vampire bat can roost alone, it is a social animal. Groups of vampire bats can number up to 2,000 individuals, according to Woodland Park Zoo.

    Breeding

    • According to Philadelphia Zoo, common vampire bats breed throughout the year and give birth to single babies or twins. After nursing for the first two months, vampire bats live on regurgitated blood provided by the mother.

    Food

    • Woodland Park Zoo says that the common vampire bat runs the risk of dying if it does not eat a blood meal every two to three days. For this reason, it is common for vampire bats to beg for regurgitated blood meal from other members of the roosting group.