Batty About BatsBatty About Bats

The Real StoryThe Real Story

Presented by Anastasia Phillipakis

Are you afraid of bats? Are you afraid of bats? How much do you know How much do you know about them? Take this about them? Take this little quiz to test your little quiz to test your knowledge.knowledge.

Bat QuizBat Quiz• Bats are most closely Bats are most closely

related to:related to: a. Micea. Mice

b. Squirrelsb. Squirrels

c. Humansc. Humans

d. Birdsd. Birds

If you choose ( c ) If you choose ( c ) humanshumans, you are , you are correct. Bats are correct. Bats are mammals and nurse mammals and nurse their young just as we their young just as we do.do.

•Bats give birth to:Bats give birth to:

a. Littersa. Litters

b. Young twice a yearb. Young twice a year

c. One baby a yearc. One baby a year

If your answer was ( c ) If your answer was ( c ) one baby a yearone baby a year, you are , you are right. A female bat will right. A female bat will give birth to only one baby give birth to only one baby a year, rarely twins are a year, rarely twins are born.born.

a. Hunt at nighta. Hunt at night

b. Steal food from housesb. Steal food from houses

c. Hunt during the dayc. Hunt during the day

•Bats:Bats:

If you answered ( a ) If you answered ( a ) hunt hunt at nightat night you are correct. you are correct. Bats hang upside down Bats hang upside down and sleep during the day. and sleep during the day. They hunt for food at They hunt for food at night. They are called night. They are called nocturnal animals.nocturnal animals.

•Bats are:Bats are:

a.a. BlindBlind

b. Able to see very wellb. Able to see very well

c. Able to see very c. Able to see very littlelittle

If you answered blind you If you answered blind you are wrong. The correct are wrong. The correct answer is ( b ) answer is ( b ) bats see bats see very wellvery well. .

•There are about:There are about:

a. 100 kinds of bats

b. 10,000 kinds of bats

c. 1,000 kinds of bats

•If you answered ( c ) If you answered ( c ) 1,000 kinds of bats1,000 kinds of bats you are correct. you are correct.

How well did you do? I How well did you do? I hope you were correct on hope you were correct on all five questions. If not, all five questions. If not, you learned something you learned something new about bats. Please new about bats. Please share your new share your new information with others.information with others.

•Here are some other Here are some other interesting facts about bats. interesting facts about bats.

•Of the 1,000 kinds of bats only one, the Vampire Bat eats blood. The Vampire Bat drinks less than a teaspoon of blood. He has special fangs to suck the blood but he also has a substance in his saliva that acts as a local anesthetic. Usually the bat’s host will sleep through dinner. Remember that the tiny Vampire Bat represents only 1/1000 kinds of bats. They are not found in the United States.

•An insect eating bat will eat approximately 600 flying insects in one hour. Bats are nature’s way of controlling the bug population.

•Large colonies of bats, such as the colony of Mexican Free-tailed bats found in Bracken Cave in Texas, can consume 250 tons of bugs in one evening.

It could be said that without bats we could be walking knee-deep in bugs every day.

•Bats are very shy and are not aggressive animals.

•Bats have many natural enemies but the deadliest is man. Man has wiped out entire species of bats and has caused many other species to become nearly extinct.

You can help preserve the remaining species of bats and their habitats. Check out the website of the Bat Conservation International at www.bci.com Dr. Merlin Tuttle is it’s founder and is considered to be one of the most knowledgeable sources on bats in the world. He is the one and only true “Bat Man”.

Here is a list of other sites that offer valuable information about bats.

http://www.batcon.org/

http://www.batcon.org/discover/echo.html

http://www.amonline.net.au/bats/

http://www.moorhen.demon.co.uk/bats1.htm

http://www.connectingstudents.com/worksheets/science/bats.htm

The End