International Bat Night
About International Bat Night
When is International Bat Night? This holiday is celebrated on the last Saturday evening of August
International Bat Night is celebrated as an evening event. The honorees are bats, who sleep during the daytime and are active at night. If you’re going to seek out bats, nighttime is the time to look. With over 1,100 species, bats live up to 30 years and can be found all over the world. Bats most often live in caves. But as you know, you can also find bats “in the belfry”.
According to EUROBATS, a European conservation and protection group, tonight is set aside to promote and enjoy these nocturnal creatures. The goal of International Bat Night is to educate people on the good things about bats and to dispel false rumors and myths. EUROBATS encourages bat conservation groups to put on educational programs and “bat walks” on International Bat Night. This night also serves to promote conservation for bats and their habitat.
As nocturnal creatures, bats use “echolocation” to fly around in the dark without hitting things. They emit a sound inaudible to human ears and listen to the echo return to help them navigate in the dark. It is also one of the ways that bats find their food. Tops on their menu are mosquitoes. If you like to enjoy warm summer nights, bats are your friend, helping to keep the mosquito population in check. Bats consume up to 1,100 mosquitoes per hour! While we may not want to talk about it, bat guano is one of the best manure fertilizers for your flower and vegetable garden plants.
See now, bats are not so bad….. until Halloween. See Halloween Bats
After just learning about the good things about bats, you may still be a little leery or afraid of bats. If so, you have “Chiroptophobia”, the fear of bats….. more phobias
How to Celebrate and Participate in International Bat Night
Here are some ideas on how to celebrate and participate in International Bat Night:
- Go out tonight in search of bats.
- Go into a cave during the day. Do not disturb the sleeping mammals as they hang upside down on the ceiling of the cave.
- Take pictures of them, if you can.
- Gather bat guano for your garden. It’s a great manure fertilizer.
- Attend an educational seminar or show put on by a bat conservation group.
- Go on a Bat Walk led by a bat conservation guide.
- Get on the internet and learn more about bats.
- Watch Batman or Batwoman programs.
Did You Know? While most bats are small, the largest species is called the “flying fox. It has a wing span of six feet!
Today's Quote
“Well done is better than well said.” – – Benjamin Franklin
History and Origin of International Bat Night
International Bat Night is a special holiday evening created in 1997 by EUROBATS, a European bat conservation group. EUROBATS is very successful in educating people about the good side of bats, correcting misguided and incorrect rumors and myths about bats, and helping to protect and grow the population of bats.
There are now over 30 countries that participate in International Bat Night.
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