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ShareWashington: While the obsession with classic bloodsuckers like Dracula dies out after Halloween, there are vampires that are real and could be stalking us all throughout the year.
New information from National Wildlife Federation has revealed that there are living, breathing vampires around us-vampire bats, mosquitoes, bugs, leeches etc., that suck blood from humans and other animals.
Some of these natural vampires have been listed below:
Vampire Bats
Desmodus rotundus and his cousins Diphylla ecaudata and Diaemus youngi, known respectively as the common, hairy-legged and white-winged vampire bats, feed exclusively on the blood of other animals.
Mosquitoes
In mosquitoes, when the female is ready to reproduce, she seeks out a blood meal. She needs the added protein boost in order to lay her eggs and create a whole new generation of lady vampires.
Lampreys
These eel-like creatures have disc-shaped mouths, which are filled with circles of razor-sharp teeth, which they use to bore into the flesh of their victims. They can remain attached for days or even weeks, all the while sucking in blood and body fluids.
Bed Bugs
After their victims fall asleep, bed bugs emerge from their hiding places in cracks and crevices and insert their sucking mouthparts in a series of bites along the blood vessels, drinking as they go and leaving as series of red, itchy welts.
Oxpeckers and Vampire Finches
Oxpeckers not only feed upon invertebrate parasites, they are happy to consume bits of flesh and blood of their host animals while they are at it. Vampire finches inhabit the Galapagos Islands and supplement their diet of seeds, insects and nectar with the blood of other birds, usually the blue-footed booby.
Leeches
These parasitic worms attach themselves to their host and bloat themselves on blood.
Candiru Catfish
Some species of candiru catfish seek out larger fish and use their spiny mouths to attach themselves to the gills of their victims, where they makes an incision with their teeth and drink their fill of fish blood.
Some species actually burrow inside the bodies of their prey, leaving a wound that looks like a bullet hole. Once inside they suck blood from the internal organs.
