"More than 1,100 kinds of bats amount to approximately a quarter of all species, and they are found everywhere except in the most extreme desert and polar regions. Some 47 species live in the United States and Canada, but the majority inhabit s where, in total number of species, they sometimes outnumber all other mammals combined. Bats come in an amazing variety of sizes and appearances. The world's smallest mammal, the of Thailand, weighs less than a , but some es of the Old World tropics have wingspans of up to 6 feet. The big-eyed, winsome expressions of flying foxes often surprise people who never have thought that a bat could be attractive."