Vespertilionidae

Vespertilionidae is the largest family of bats, containing vesper bats such as pipistrelles, evening bats, and brown bats. Its members occur worldwide except in Antarctica.

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Chiroptera: Chiroptera is the mammalian order comprising bats, the only mammals capable of sustained powered flight. Vespertilionidae is one family within this order.
Bat flight: Bat flight is powered movement through the air using flexible membrane wings supported by elongated fingers. Vesper bats maneuver with wings whose shape changes through each stroke.
Biological pest control: Biological pest control is the suppression of pest populations by natural enemies, including predators. Insect-eating vesper bats can reduce agricultural and forest pest populations.
Pipistrelle: A pipistrelle is a small bat in the genus Pipistrellus, found across much of the Old World. Pipistrelles are among the characteristic small bats within Vespertilionidae.
Molecular phylogenetics: Molecular phylogenetics reconstructs evolutionary relationships using DNA, RNA, or protein sequence data. Genetic analyses have revised hypotheses about relationships among vesper bat lineages.
Mammal: A mammal is a vertebrate whose defining traits include hair and milk production by mammary glands. Bats belong to this broader vertebrate class.
Laryngeal echolocation: Laryngeal echolocation is the production of high-frequency calls in the voice box and their interpretation through returning echoes. Most vesper bats generate their navigational and prey-detection calls in the larynx.
White-nose syndrome: White-nose syndrome is a fungal disease that has caused severe mortality in hibernating North American bats. Several vesper bat species have suffered major declines from this disease.
Evening bat: The evening bat (Nycticeius humeralis) is a North American vesper bat that roosts in trees and buildings. It is one example of the family’s North American diversity.
Cryptic species: Cryptic species are distinct evolutionary lineages that are difficult to distinguish by outward appearance. Genetic surveys can uncover hidden diversity among bats once grouped as single species.