Celebrate Bat Week, Oct 24-31

Monday, October 14, 2024

Did you know:

  • Bats are the only flying mammal!
  • Bats aren't blind; they can actually see quite well.
  • There are over 1,400 species of bats worldwide.
  • About 70% of all bats eat insects (moths, beetles, flies, mosquitos) but the rest might eat mice, frogs, and fish, or pollen, nectar and fruit or even the blood of other animals.
  • Most of the bats in the U.S. eat insects, so here in Illinois they are either already hibernating or have migrated south due to lack of food.
  • Bats are great pollinators and help disperse seeds.
  • We have bats to thank for tequila, figs, chocolate and many more food items!
  • Unfortunately, due to habitat loss, collisions with wind turbines, and diseases, like White-Nose Syndrome, bat populations are in decline.

To learn more about why bats matter, and to help protect these amazing aerial acrobats, click here.