A blogger I follow (and admire) posted this yesterday. The post was about an old Victorian attic renovation. The reno is beautiful and there isn’t anything wrong with the post except… well… I felt the post fostered a negative belief for bats which prompted me to comment to the bloggers post. Full Disclosure: I made the assumption that the homeowners hired an exterminator to remove the bats — an assumption I should not have made without finding out all the facts first. To my surprise, the owner responded to my comment to say he did not use exterminators, rather the bats “moved out on their own, due to the renovation”. Believe me when I say the following: I was glad to learn I was wrong. I’d rather be wrong when it comes to potential animal cruelty. Then again, I still think it is sad that the bats were disrupted and forced to move.
Now, I am almost certain (then again, I shouldn’t assume because look where that got me the last time I did) a good percentage of you out there reading this post are thinking, “Bats?!?! Gross! Bats carry rabies. Bats fly around aiming for your hair. Bats are dirty and carry disease. Bats are [fill in blank].”
Easy.
What I am about to tell you will set your mind at ease.
Ready?
I was just like you. I used to think bats didn’t serve a purpose except carry disease. Well, as the proverbial ‘saying’ goes. “You’re never too old to learn.”
If it wasn’t for this post by BlueInThisLight I would have never learned of Bat World Sanctuary and Amanda Lollar. After spending some time at the Bat World Sanctuary website, I realized everything I knew or thought I knew about bats was WRONG!!!!
You may also find this surprising: I have grown quite fond of bats and now consider them adorable little creatures.
Adorable?!?!
Yes dammit! I said ADORABLE, so suck it. 😉
[Placing lecture cap on head] I encourage (READ: beg, plead, implore) everyone who is reading this post to Nav on over to Bat World and learn about how bats are an important cog in the wheel of our eco system and make a donation.
Below is an excerpt from BW:
Why Save Bats?
Bats are clean, gentle and intelligent, they are vital to the ecosystem, and they enhance our lives in many ways. Fruit and nectar bats bring us approximately 450 commercial products and over 80 different medicines through seed dispersal and pollination. Up to 98% of all rainforest regrowth comes from seeds that have been spread by fruit bats. Insect-eating bats are literal vacuum cleaners of the night skies, eating millions upon millions of harmful bugs. They protect us by eating insect-pests that destroy crops as well as insects that cause human disease.
If this article doesn’t convince you that Bats are really very cool creatures playing a very important role; or that bats can in fact be adorable. Then I suggest you click here and feast your eyes on the most adorable little bat named Bootsanna. If that picture of her with a little pacifier doesn’t melt your heart (and change your mind about bats), well then HELL, nothing will.
😉
-GE 2013
Addendum: I thought I would include this video of a cute baby bat during feeding time.
Girl for Animal Liberation 