BAT BUG

any blood-sucking insect of the family Polyctenidae (order Heteroptera), which numbers at least 18 species. Bat bugs are external parasites found in the fur of tropical bats. The adult (between 3.5 and 5 mm [0.14 and 0.2 inch] long) lacks eyes and wings. Its forelegs are short and thick, and its middle and hindlegs are long and slender. As indicated by the family name, the bat bug has from one to many comblike rows of spines (ctenidia) on its body. The young are born alive in an advanced stage of development.