Extraordinarily Amazing Facts About Bats
Published by Contrary to popular belief, bats are not blind,they don’t feed on human blood and they are not riddled with rabies. These fantastic creatures are amazing.
There is a whole tradition of myth and superstition around the subject of bats. A thousand different species of bat are found worldwide.
The bat is the only mammal which is capable of true flight. You can see clearly from this picture that the bat is actually furry like a mouse.
Mother bats will often adopt orphaned juvenile bats. They live in close family groups and produce milk to nourish their young.
In West Africa, dried guano (bat droppings) is packaged and used as fertilizer. It is 100% natural and adds plenty of nitrogen to the soil in less fertile areas.
The Bumblebee Bat is the world’s smallest bat. It is native to Thailand. As you can see in the picture, it is only the size of half a thumb.
Bats have an amazing ability to hibernate at will. They close down their metabolic system and go into a sleep state. They don’t hibernate at particular times of year like bears and tortoises do.
In South America, bats play a big part in pollinating bananas. Insects do part of the job but most of it is done by these small fruit bats as they forage at night time.
Bats hang upside down because their feet and legs cannot support their body and wings for any length of time. This picture shows just how thin and spindly those legs and feet are in comparison with the feet and body.
Liked it
17 Responses to “Extraordinarily Amazing Facts About Bats”
On March 29, 2008 at 9:55 pm
I saw fruit bats in Australia and they were interesting creatures! I learned some things I did not know from this article.
On March 30, 2008 at 4:20 am
I don’t really like bats, and we have loads flying around here as soon as the sun goes down. I’ve learned something new though, about the reason they hang upside down!
On March 30, 2008 at 6:33 am
Great articles, and pictures, Louie
On March 30, 2008 at 12:31 pm
Great article Louie! I never knew so much about bats!
On March 30, 2008 at 8:35 pm
I have to say, I’m a bit disturbed that at the bottom of this truly lovely little feature on bats, the first “Yahoo Ad” is for Chicago area extermination services. NOT nice!
On March 31, 2008 at 4:30 am
The last picture is a Kluang or a flying fox. Navigates through its eyesight.
On April 1, 2008 at 10:33 am
Sounds like a horror story, Anne! You should write an article about them as many people are very interested.
On April 7, 2008 at 9:53 pm
I actually have seen a bat land on a kids head and claw at his face then quickly flew away. However the kid was throwing pebbles up in the air trying to hit it as several were flying around. Kid was OK and I believe learned a valuable lesson. I don’t think the bat was intentionally attacking.
On April 10, 2008 at 6:50 am
Bats tend to get into the chimney’s of houses in North Florida, and in some cases they seem to like attics also.
On April 13, 2008 at 3:47 am
Thanks for the info Ix. As for rabies in the UK…we don’t have it according to the Department of Ag and Fish. That’s why the regulation regarding import of animals (especially pet cats and dogs)is so strict.
On April 13, 2008 at 10:25 am
Fascinating article. I realize there are myriad opinions about Bats, and whether they are friendly to humans. However, I have been out, in the late evening, fishing, and found it quite comforting to have Bats swooping down, within inches of us, as they were eating mosquitoes who wanted to eat us. Furthermore, I have been at campsites in Maine, as well as at my home, in Maine, where in the evenings, it was most reassuring to have these little “dive bombers” flying around us, working with the Dragonflies, keeping the area free of noxious insects. Given the choice, I vote for Bats.
On April 14, 2008 at 5:36 pm
too bad they are all dieing. Something is killing up to 90% of them
They are finding that some were coming out of the caves that they live in too early to look for food so they went in to see what was going on.
Once inside they found that there are many many bats dead on the floor with a white fungus on their face.
Nobody knows what the fungus is but they don’t think that it is the fungus that is killing the bats. Rather, they believe that the fungus is just opportunistic and is growing on the bats because of how weak they have grown.
Some think it may be associated with what is happening to the bees. Some sort of pesticide or something.
One thing is for sure, the bugs will be bad this year and we are in trouble if the bats don’t come back
On April 16, 2008 at 2:48 am
As the name suggests I’m a bat fan. They are an important part of the ecosystem and if you stop being silly about them, they are quite interesting and even attractive little animals. They won’t get in your hair and most bats are healthy and won’t give you any disease. They will eat your annoying insects though and are worth preserving.
If one gets in your house, throw a towel over it and gently carry it outside and let it go.
On July 1, 2008 at 8:40 pm
Hi I have a question if anyone can answer it for me. We were in our pool tonight and the bats were touching down on the water several times to the point my kids & I got out of the water as they were coming close, very close. I don\’t love or hate them and I apreciate the job they do, but is there anything I can put around our pool to keep them away from it? Tiki torches or anything, any ideas would be really helpful. I know they are just getting bugs. My kids have been on there bikes and they come close to them there to and they come in because they get scared. We would like to use the pool without this happening. THANKS
On July 16, 2008 at 12:06 pm
I have seen more dead bats this year than ever. We have had bats out on our windows during the day, two caught on a cactus in the garden, that died, and now this moring one on the deck. I’ve lived with these coming to our house every year for over 20 years. Never before have I seen this many in trouble. Just cleaned up the dried guano and showed the bats to our grandsons when they would come out at evening. Really surpirsed by all this. Thanks
On March 23, 2009 at 4:15 pm
wow i love the picts and facts.
On April 7, 2009 at 8:36 pm
Do bats play dead when scared? Like if my cat got it? And afterwards fly away?
Post Comment