Urban Nature Pictures 10/22; 50 More Urban Species #44 Eastern Red Bat
Eastern red bat Lasiurus borealis
The eastern red bat is a migratory bat found across the United States. It lives in forests and roosts alone and in the open on trees, depending on its reddish fur to camouflage it as a dead leaf. They hunt dusk-flying insects, including planthoppers and ground beetles.
This individual was probably en route out of increasing cold Boston, having spent the previous night in one of Franklin Park's grand oaks, when some unknown disaster occurred. Perhaps a collision with a car (there was some wing trauma), onset of disease (though its nose was free of white mold), or something else. It was found on the road in the park, and deemed not healthy enough to save.
Quite a bit cuter than our bulldog-faced brown bat species.
It was already dead when this picture was taken, to show the beautiful wings.