Facts and General Information About Bats
General Information
More than 1,100 species of bats account for almost a quarter of all mammal species.
Bats are exceptionally vulnerable to extinction, in part because they are the slowest-reproducing mammals on Earth for their size, most producing only one young annually.
Contrary to popular misconceptions, bats are not blind, do not become entangled in human hair and seldom transmit disease to other animals or humans.
Bats are the only mammals capable of true flight. Most bat species use an extremely sophisticated biological sonar called echolocation to navigate and hunt for food. Some bats can detect an object as fine as a human hair in total darkness.
Worldwide, bats are primary predators of night-flying insects. A single little brown myotis, a common resident of North American forests, can consume 1,000 mosquito-sized insects in just one hour.
All but four of the 47 species found in the United States and Canada feed solely on insects, including many destructive agricultural pests. The remaining species feed on nectar, pollen and the fruit of cacti and agaves and play an important role in pollination and seed dispersal in southwestern deserts.
The 20 million Mexican free-tailed bats at Bracken Cave, Texas, eat approximately 200 tons of insects nightly.
A colony of 150 big brown bats, which often roost in tree cavities, can eat enough cucumber beetles each summer to eliminate up to 33 million of their rootworm larvae, a major agricultural pest.
Desert ecosystems rely on nectar-feeding bats as primary pollinators of giant cacti, including the famous organ pipe and saguaro of Arizona.
Bat droppings in caves support whole ecosystems of unique organisms, including bacteria useful in detoxifying wastes, improving detergents and producing gasohol and antibiotics.
More than half of American bat species are in decline or already listed as endangered. Losses are occurring at alarming rates worldwide.
During cold weather, many bats hibernate in caves, mines or other sites that provide stable, cool temperatures. Others migrate to warmer climates, sometimes traveling up to a thousand miles or more.
For their size, bats are among the world’s longest-lived mammals. The little brown myotis, a common forest bat, has a documented life span of up to 34 years in the wild.
Why are bats in trouble?
More than 1,100 kinds of bats account for almost a quarter of all mammal species, yet they receive relatively little funding for research and conservation.
More than 50% of American bat species are in severe decline or already listed as endangered. Losses are occurring at alarming rates worldwide.
Bats are exceptionally vulnerable to extinction. Many bat species congregate in large numbers, making them easy to burn, dynamite, or poison. A single act of vandalism can kill millions. They are also the slowest reproducing mammals on earth for their size, most producing only one pup annually.
What can I do to help bats?
- Install a bat house and watch bats patrol your yard for bothersome insects.
- Encourage teachers to include bats in lesson plans about nature and the environment.
- Teach children the "look but don't touch" rule for bats and other wild animals.
Even more bat facts!
Bats are vital to controlling insect pests
- Texas and around the world, bats are natural enemies of night-flying insects.
- The 20 million Mexican free-tailed bats from Bracken Cave, Texas, eat approximately 200 tons of insects nightly.
- If we lose our bat species, we increase the demand for chemical pesticides, jeopardizing whole ecosystems of other animal and plant species, and harming human economies.
Bats pollinate plants and disperse seeds
- More than 300 plant species in the Old World tropics alone rely on the pollinating and seed dispersal services of bats, and additional bat-plant relationships are constantly being discovered. These bat-reliant plants provide more than 450 economically important products, valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually.
- Tropical bats are key elements in rain forest ecosystems, which rely on them to pollinate flowers and disperse seeds for countless trees and shrubs.
- In the wild, important agricultural plants, from bananas, breadfruit, and mangoes to cashews, dates and figs rely on bats for pollination and seed dispersal.
- Tequila is produced from agave plants whose seed production drops to 1/3000th of normal without bat pollinators.
- Desert ecosystems rely on nectar-feeding bats as primary pollinators of giant cacti, including the famous organ pipe and saguaro of Arizona.
What is the truth about bats and rabies?
- Like most mammals, bats can contract rabies; however less than one-half of one percent of bats ever get the disease, and those that do normally bite only in self-defense and pose little threat to people who do not handle them. (This is the number one reason to enforce the “look but don’t touch” rule!)
- During the past 50 years, only 48 U.S. residents are believed to have contracted rabies from bats, making it one of the rarest diseases in America. (In comparison, during 2001 alone - the last available statistics - 368 people contracted typhoid fever, 1,544 people contracted malaria, and 15,989 people contracted tuberculosis!)
- The fear of rabies is far disproportionate to the actual risk. To put the risk in perspective: 20 Americans die every year from dog attacks, yet we would never consider massive media scare campaigns suggesting that we eradicate our canine friends.
Fun bat trivia to share with friends at parties!
- Contrary to popular myths, bats are not blind, do not become entangled in human hair, and seldom transmit disease to other animals or humans.
- Bat droppings (guano) in caves support whole ecosystems of unique organisms, and are a popular garden fertilizer.
- An anticoagulant from vampire bat saliva may soon be used to treat human heart patients.
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