by Peggy Hoehne
October 13, 1999 - Independence Bulletin Journal
This time of year bats can be found in every grade school classroom, clinging to residential windows and hanging from store ceilings. We have come to associate bats with Halloween, witches, and vampires. In fact, this portrayal of bats is far from the truth.
There are only three species of vampire bats and they live in Central and South America. Even there the name vampire is a misnomer. They do not suck blood, instead they make a small incision with their razor sharp teeth and then lap up the blood.
Scientist have been studying the saliva of these bats. They hope to develop new anticoagulant drugs to prevent blood clots in heart patients.
Another common myth about bats is that they will fly into your hair. In truth, bats will not deliberately fly into hair or stay there if they can possibly get away. Dr. Tuttle of Bat Conservation International tested this by trying an experiment. He could not get a bat to stay on the person's head even when he wrapped the hair around the bat. As soon as he took his hand away the bat would fly off.
The fear of rabies is another reason people use for getting rid of bats. Though bats can contract rabies, less than one-half of one percent of the almost 1,000 different species of bats actually has rabies. The average neighborhood pet that has been left unvaccinated is in more of a danger of contracting rabies.
If for some reason you should be bitten by a bat it is safest to seek immediate medical attention. Rabies vaccine has changed dramatically in the last few years. It is no longer a painful experience and if by chance the bat was rabid the vaccine will save your life.
Like certain other mammals, bats are very clean. They groom themselves daily.
There has been a dramatic decline in the bat population. Of the 44 species in the United States, more than half are either on the federal endangered list or are official candidates for it. Many of the native bat species have been wiped out entirely.
Because bats are harder to depict as cute and cuddly they receive less attention as an endangered species than do baby seals or snow leopards. There are many causes for the decline in bat populations, but as with most species the biggest offender is man.
Because of ignorance and fear people have unwittingly or deliberately destroyed many bats and their habitat. Amateur spelunkers often unwittingly disturb bats during hibernation. Developers may pave over cave entrances never knowing they are trapping colonies of bats inside.
Other people have deliberately thrown cherry bombs into their caves, built fires at the entrances or wakened them during hibernation. And because they roost in huge colonies a single act of vandalism can destroy thousands or even millions.
Bats are slow to reproduce, most have only one pup a year. Many die from destruction of their habitat. Logging of old-growth forest can destroy roosting areas. Development may remove open water they need to drink. The use of pesticides has killed many more.
To those who know, bats are not only harmless, they are essential for maintaining the balance of nature. Seventy percent of bats eat insects, many eating half their body weight in bugs each night.
The Little Brown Bat can eat from 600 to 1,200 night flying insects in just one hour. That's a lot of mosquitoes that will no longer bug you.
Bats can help farmers use less pesticides. A colony of just 150 Big Brown Bats can eat up to 18 million or more rootworms each summer. Bats also disperse seeds and pollinate flowers and fruit.
Many people are building bat houses. There are many varieties, from fancy purchased ones to simple homemade types. A bat house only two foot tall and wide and only six inches deep can attract nursery colonies of up to 300 bats.
If you can attract a colony of bats to live near you summer will be much more enjoyable. Bats are the only major predator of night-flying insects. Your backyard will become more habitable thanks to the little mammals who have been greatly misunderstood for centuries.
