The greater bulldog bat can forage for fish near the water surface. In a Panama account, it responded to surface ripples and dipped its feet into the water.
A Panama field account says reddish fur is common and describes long talons. These are local observations.
The greater bulldog bat catches prey while flying close to the water. In a small bay of Gatun Lake, Panama, researchers recorded free-flying bats traveling parallel to the surface at roughly 20–40 cm above it. Calm water creates a distinctive acoustic setting for a bat using echolocation to find food.
The two Noctilio species in the study emitted exceptionally intense calls, around 136–137 dB source level, yet their estimated prey-detection distances differed far less. Higher call frequencies attenuate more quickly in air, helping explain the pattern. This was a field study at one bay; it did not test whether other water bodies or populations share the same foraging conditions.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
At a Gatun Lake bay in Panama, greater bulldog bats foraged about 20–40 cm above the water. Local habitat observations can therefore include open-water feeding areas as well as forest roosts. The acoustic study was conducted at one bay and did not assess roosts, prey-stock effects or population trend. Applicability to other regions and a current formal conservation category remain unconfirmed.