We finished up learning about bats by learning the difference between microbats and megabats.
Microbats are the smaller bats that eat insects, vampire bats are among these, and they eat blood from mammals, mostly cows and horses.
Megabats are fruit bats. They don’t use echolocation, but instead use sight and smell. After all fruit doesn’t move, so you’re not really needing a sensitive way of finding things.
We finished up our discussion of bats by watching the bats fly from the bridge in Round Rock. It was amusing to me because the colony of bats in Austin is mentioned in our text book as an example of people not understanding God’s reason for creating certain animals.
See, back in the 60s and 70s they had a panic about bats carrying rabies, so they started killing the bats in Austin. Then they noticed a dramatic upswing in insects, and realized there was a reason for bats. One bat eats thousands of insects an hour.
So, now Austin has one of the largest colonies of bats in the United States all roosting under the Congress Street Bridge. It’s very cool, and once my internet is working again I’ll put the you-tube video in.
Oh and the linky, that’s what happens when you write posts with a migraine.
Aren’t the bats cool, and if you want there’s a 2 minute and a 5 minute version. It’s the coolest thing to see them streaming out of there.
I must not have read all the signs last time we were at the zoo – because I didn't realize fruit bats don't use echo location – but it makes sense!
Bats are very cool!
And on the subject of bats and rabies, I remember we found a dead bat in our yard when I was 4 or 5, and it was this huge deal, calling in specialists to remove it.
Very cool! There is a childrens' book about the bats in Austin (I'm sure you know that already).
I'm hoping to get my post up today. I was in the ER with my husband all night and just can't seem to get my post done.
C has been learning about bats in school so I'll have to show him that video later! He'll love it. Sorry I put two links up – I didn't think the first worked and not sure how to delete the second one. Whoops!
How fascinating – it must be so cool to be able to see bats flying like that. I haven't known this fact about Austin until I started reading your blog (I think you mentioned it once before).
Very interesting! The myths about bats really detered me for caring about this animal. Just like I tell my children the more you know about something the less afraid you are of it, I guess I should follow my own advice. Thank you for sharing, I'll pick up some books about bats now.
Where we use to take the kids camping they would put on full information lessons about bats. The kids loved it. I don't really care for bats but have to admit learned a lot from their presentations.
That was a cool video, bats are interesting creatures but I think I would be a little freaked out to see them all flying around like that. When I was like 13 I had a bat fly around my friends house while I was spending the night and it freaked me out. So I do think they are interesting but I'm not sure I would want them flying around me.
Its true that you have to think of the purpose for creatures. We always have lots of spiders in our house but then again we like never have any other kinds of bugs (except for ants). I think they take care of them for us lol.
I so wanted to see the bats when we were in Austin, but it was the wrong season…