| Covered in hair, not feathers, bats are mammals...but they aren't rodents (like rats). |
Members of the order, Chiroptera (meaning "hand-wing"), bats literally fly with their hands! Over one quarter of all mammal species are bats, and these creatures can be found all over the world.
Some are tiny...the size of a bumblebee!
Some are HUGE...the size of a fox!
Only a few actually drink blood, and they do it much like a horsefly. They take a small bite and lick the drops (most often from animals other than humans). Most bats are fruit or insect eaters! The fruit and nectar eating bats are some of nature's gardeners, helping to spread seeds and pollen from plant to plant.
Bananas are one of many plants that rely on bats for pollination!
Other than the fabulous, Stellaluna (J. Cannon), Bat Loves the Night (N. Davies) and Bats (G. Gibbons) are great batty books for young readers.
Is it a bird or a bat?
Find out by throwing something soft (like a flexible frisbee or a soft ball) into the air when you see something bat-like flying nearby. If it is a bat, it will dive at the object, using echolocation to find out if it is food!
The Organization for Bat Conservation maintains a great website, including a section devoted to children: www.batconservation.org.
Visit the Ohio Department of Natural Resources A-Z species guide, to learn about the 13 different species of bats that share our backyard in Ohio!
If you live in the Cincinnati area, the Cincinnati Zoo and the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History and Science both have bat habitats where you can see species beyond those indigenous to the area.
Sid the Science Kid also has a nice piece about bats!
just think about how many fewer bug bites that means!
If you were going to eat 2,000- 6,000 of something, what would it be?
Many bat species are threatened or endanged,
find out how you can help by building a bat house!
