Why Should We Help Bats?
What do you think of when you think of bats? Chances are you probably think of a bat living in a cave. A bat that will bite you and steal your blood if you come near. But the truth is that only one of more than 1,300 species of bats drink your blood. In Maryland, all of our bat species fall into the Microchiroptera group that include brown bats, eastern red bats, and Indiana bats, which are endangered.
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Bats actually do many things that help the environment. In fact, they are major pollinators. Bats also eat mosquitoes, stink bugs, moths, and more! That is an environmentally friendly way to reduce bugs! It is estimated that bats provide over $3 billion dollars in pest control services for the United States agricultural industry.
Despite all of these things the biggest reason why we should help bats is because many species are endangered and they are major pollinators. The world would not be the same without bats. For example, are you craving delectable chocolate? About to gobble a delicious banana? Those tasty plants will not be here without bats. That's why we should help bats by making a bat house.
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Would you like to learn more about bats?
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