A picture illustrating the location of the calcar on a bat.

The calcar, also known as the calcaneum ^[1], is the name given to a spur of cartilage arising from inner side of ankle and running along part of outer interfemoral membrane in bats ^[1][2], this is to help spread the interfemoral membrane ^[3], which is part of the wing membrane between the tail and the hind legs.

This membrane can form a basket or pouch to help catch and hold insects captured in flight ^[3]. The oldest known ancestor to present day bats, Icaronycteris index, apparently did not have a calcar or spur as evidenced by fossil remains.^[4].

Calcar (Femorale) also refers to the dense, vertically orientated bone present in the posteroemedial region of the femoral shaft under the lesser trochanter of the femur.

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b} The Anatomy of Bats
2. ^ The Handbook of British Mammals (ASIN B000WPL1CO)
3. ^ ^{a b} Encyclopedia Smithsonian: Bat Facts
4. ^ Ontogeny, Functional Ecology, and Evolution of Bats (ISBN 978-0-52-162632-3)

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