Batman and Endangered Species?

What is the connection between Batman and Endangered Species? 
So... Today is Batman Day (yes! not a joke) and this reminded us 
of an endangered species that usually doesn't receive much attention: Bats.

The bats are the only mammals that are capable of true flight. 
Almost 1,000 bat species can be found worldwide. In fact, bats make up a quarter of all mammal species in our world!

Most bats , 70%, consume insects, sharing a large part of natural pest control. 


There are also fruit-eating bats and nectar-eating bats, contributing to pollination worldwide. 


There are carnivorous bats that prey on small mammals, birds, lizards, frogs and even fish. 


Perhaps the most famous there are blood-sucking vampire bats from South America.


Bats have many highly unusual characteristics:  
* Many have echo-location sonar far more sensitive than humans.  
* Their abilities are so finely developed that they are only beginning to be understood.  
* They also are intelligent and devoted to one another.  
* They are among the few species who aid one another during the birthing process, as "animal midwives." 

Bats Species Status:

The current estimation is that about 40 percent of US bats are declining or already endangered. 

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists: 
26 bat species as Critically Endangered (with imminent risk of extinction), 
51 others are Endangered and 
954 bat species are considered Vulnerable. 
Since bats are among the most under-studied mammals, the IUCN also lists 203 bat species as “Data Deficient” with too little information available to determine their conservation status, 
in addition over 150 newly described species have yet to be added to the IUCN Red List and have not yet been formally assessed.

Main Threats:

These are the main threats for bats, all caused by people, therefore the greatest threat for bats are actually people!


Habitat Loss 

The forests many bats use for roosting and/or foraging for food are being destroyed. 
This is especially critical in the tropical rainforests, with both a rich diversity of bats species and a precipitous loss of woodlands.

Caves, mines and nesting areas are being blocked and destroyed. 
Countless bats are being driven out of roosts in caves and abandoned mines. 
During the winter months, large numbers of bats hibernate in caves and mines. If roused from hibernation, often by human disturbance, bats can burn through the stores of their fat and not make it through the winter.


Hunting

In several areas around the world, bats are still being killed because of harmful myths and misplaced fears. In Latin America, whole colonies of beneficial bats are routinely destroyed according to a mistaken belief that all bats are vampires. (In reality, only 3 of 1,300 bat species feed on blood in Latin America.)

In regions such as Southeast Asia and the Pacific islands bats are hunted, both as bush meat for local consumption and commercially for markets and restaurants. Bats are also used in some folk medicines.

Until recently, bats were routinely poisoned by commercial pest control companies in the mistaken idea that all bats pose rabies threat transmission, while only one-half of 1 percent of bats contract rabies.

What Can We Do:

There are several ways to help bat conservation:

• Protecting bats habitats.
• Contribution to Bat Conservation organizations, such as: www.batcon.org
• Building a bat house (click here for further instructions for building a bat house). 

• Promoting awareness.
• Visiting a bat viewing site.