I didn't think there were even such things as "vampire bats"...thought they were just in the movies...
http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/08/08/vampire.bats.ap/index.html
At least 38 Warao Indians have died in remote villages in Venezuela, and medical experts suspect an outbreak of rabies spread by bites from vampire bats.
After being bitten, there is an incubation period of about 48 hours, then the victim becomes a vampire, or a member of the "clan of the undead", and they must feast on human victims in order to maintain their immortality and ability to fly and be really strong. 
