Kids Go Wild: Wildlife News

Turning a Bat Reputation Around Rodriguez fruit bat in the Bronx Zoo's World of Darkness ©WCS What comes to mind when you think of bats? A full moon? Sharp fangs? Your favorite superhero? Many children who are spooked by bats don’t know the real truth about them. In fact, bats help keep our planet green, and are important to the food chain. Bats pollinate and spread the seeds of plants from rain forests to backyard gardens. Many fruit trees that flower only at night depend on bats for their survival. Bats also help us by eating pesky mosquitoes and other bugs. More than 1,100 species of bats can be found around the world, on every continent but Antarctica. Just like birds, bats have a varied diet. Most live on insects or fruit, but others eat fish, frogs, birds, and even other bats. Only three species of bats—the vampires, which live in South America—eat the blood of mammals and birds. Bats face many threats to their survival, such as habitat loss and the use of harmful pesticides in the places where they live. In fact, nearly half of the 45 species native to the United States are already endangered or in serious decline. Two Wildlife Conservation Society scientists, Bruce and Carolyn Miller, are studying some of the threatened bats in the tropical forests of Central and South America. There, they record the distinct echolocation calls made by each type of Neotropical bat with a special device called the Anabat. This device allows the Millers to identify which bats inhabit the forests, and how many live there. Their work helps scientists learn which habitats and species are at greatest risk, and which are most important to protect. Lesser long-tongued nectar bat feeding on fruits in the Bronx Zoo's World of Darkness ©WCS Five species of fruit bats (bats that eat fruits, flowers, and nectar), hang around the Bronx Zoo’s World of Darkness—lesser spear-nosed bats, Mexican fruit bats, short-tailed fruit bats, lesser long-tongued nectar bats, and the endangered Rodriguez fruit bats. Though you may have to squint to see in the World of Darkness, bats have remarkable eyesight, and a unique sense of hearing that helps them navigate in the dark. Second grade students at Ho-Ho-Kus Public School studied a unit on bats with their enrichment teacher. They read Stellaluna by Jannell Cannon, and learned how to tell the difference between a bat and a bird. They also compared fruit and insect bats. Once they were convinced that bats are not only harmless and clean, but also helpful to people, they created advertisements to encourage people of all ages to visit the World of Darkness exhibit at the Bronx Zoo. Here is a sampling of the work of the Ho-Ho-Kus students. The bats of the Bronx Zoo thank them for their support! Click on each picture to zoom in   Bats are harmless   Love bats Bats are cool, but not cruel! Bats can help!