Rats filmed snatching bats from the air for first time

A four-year study has revealed brown rats actively preying on bats at two urban hibernacula in Northern Germany. At Segeberger Kalkberg cave—home to over 30,000 bats, mostly Daubenton’s and Natterer’s—infrared cameras in 2020 captured rats jumping to intercept bats in flight or attacking landed ones.

In just five weeks, 30 predation attempts and 13 kills were recorded. A rat cache contained 52 bat carcasses. From 2021 to 2024, thermal imaging at Lüneburger Kalkberg documented rat activity near crevices and uncovered another identical carcass pile, confirming the behavior at both sites.

The extended timeline allowed researchers to gather video, thermal data, mist-net species confirmation, and carcass evidence across seasons, ensuring solid conclusions before the 2025 submission.

Rats hunt in complete darkness using whiskers to sense wingbeat air currents, then grab prey with forepaws. A colony of 15–60 rats could kill 2,100–8,400 bats per winter—up to 7% of Segeberg’s population.

Both bats and rats are major reservoirs for coronaviruses and paramyxoviruses. This direct predation creates a new interface for bat coronaviruses to spill over into rats, potentially amplifying and spreading them to humans and livestock. No immediate outbreak risk exists, but the pathway raises One Health concerns.