Bats are one of the most iconic figures of Halloween. Feared for their thirst for blood and tendency to surprise unsuspecting hikers who disturb their slumber, bats give people the heebie jeebies. But this is unfair. Besides having incredibly refined flying techniques, bats are incredible, fascinating creatures who don't deserve to be thought of as creeps.

Don't believe me? Read on.

Baby bats are adorable

First of all, let's dispel the misconception that bats are ugly. Are you kidding? Look how adorable this baby bat eating a banana is. It has over a million views on YouTube because LOOK AT THE LITTLE FUZZ FACE.

Much like humans, most bats have only one pup per year. Baby bats drink milk from their mothers, like other mammals, and mama bats can find their babies among thousands or millions of other bats by their unique voices and scents. For added pup protection, bats live together in groups called colonies, which typically contain 100–1,000 bats, but mothers and pups stay in groups separate from the adult males. The other mothers help take care of the pup until it is old enough to care for itself.

Bats aren't actually blind

No, bats aren't really blind—in fact, the larger species of bats can see better than humans—but in order to "see" in absolute darkness, they use echolocation, which means they emit high-pitched sounds (inaudible to the human ear) and listen as the sound waves bounce off nearby surfaces. In fact, with echolocation bats can see everything but color and detect obstacles as fine as a human hair. Cool, right? So the next time someone calls you "blind as a bat," you can go ahead and take it as a compliment.

Bats don't want to suck your blood

When you think of bats you might think of Dracula—a blood-sucking vampire who can turn into a bat. But in fact, out of over 1,100 species of bats (making up ~25% of the world's mammal population), there are only three species of "vampire bats" in the world. Not only that, but vampire bats only eat about a spoon's worth of blood, and they typically feed on cattle, not people. Vampire bats have even been known to regurgitate blood to share it with their less-lucky pals who didn't get to feed. (Bro-bats before no-bats, am I right?)

One more cool thing: it turns out scientists are studying the enzyme vampire bats use to prevent clotting, and they're developing an anti-coagulant medication for humans (called—I swear I'm not making this up—Draculin).

Bats eat mosquitos

Besides being annoying and not knowing how to take a hint (no means no, mosquitoes), mosquitoes can carry all kinds of horrible (often fatal) diseases like malaria, yellow fever, and West Nile virus.

That's where bats come in. Bats can eat up to 1,200 mosquitoes in an hour and often consume their body weight in insects every night. (Note to self: get a bat; more effective than citronella candles.) According to the Center for Biological Diversity, bats end up providing "nontoxic pest-control services totaling $3.7 billion to $53 billion per year."

To recap: bats eat bugs and save us money. What's not to like?

Bats fertilize and pollinate

Lest you think the only thing bats are good for is eating mosquitoes, read on. Bat droppings, called guano, are one of the richest fertilizers in the world. In fact, one study showed that 300 plant species rely on fruit bats to spread their seeds for them. You can also thank bats for agave, the plant used to make tequila (and then, the day after drinking said tequila, you can curse them for it).

Bats (like people) generally prefer warmer climates

Bats live all over the world, but they mostly prefer warmer areas. (Not too hot, mind you. Bats can get overheated, just like people.) Some bats migrate south for the winter, whereas others hibernate through the cold winter months. During hibernation, bats can survive in freezing temperatures, even after being encased in ice. They're like bears, except more hardcore.

Bats can be as small as a coin or as big as a dog

Although people tend to think of bats as being roughly rat-sized, bats range dramatically in size. The world's smallest bat is the bumblebee bat of Thailand, which is smaller than a thumbnail and weighs less than a penny. On the other end of the spectrum, the world’s largest bat, with a wingspan of up to six feet, is the "flying fox" that lives on islands in the South Pacific.

Bats need our help!

As I mentioned above, bats reproduce slowly, with most females giving birth to only one pup per year. This makes recovery from population losses slower and harder to do than with many species of mammals, and it's often difficult to spot significant declines in bat species until their situation is dire.

There are three main causes of rapid bat population loss:

Loss of habitats – We already know that deforestation is a serious problem for everyone, and bats are among the victims here, but it turns out they're also being uprooted from caves and mines, sometimes mid-hibernation, which is an especially risky time for bats to try to find a new home.



Humans – Bat Conservation International points out that many bats are hunted by people, whether due to superstition (thinking bats are all vampires) or commercial consumption (eating and selling bat meat). Humans may also be inadvertently spreading white-nose syndrome (WNS) to bats.



Disease – According to the Organization for Bat Conservation, WNS (a fungus that spreads over bats while they're hibernating and are thus highly vulnerable) has killed 5.7 million bats in the northeastern United States since 2006. WNS causes bats to act strangely during cold winter months, including flying outside during the day, and has a mortality rate of 90% to 100%.





So how can you help? One way to help bats is by putting up a bat house in your yard. (It's a win-win: they'll have a place to live, and you might never have to buy mosquito repellent again.) If you're a scientist, help the US Fish and Wildlife Service research WNS to stop the spread of disease. You can also "adopt" a bat, donate an old vehicle, take precautions to avoid disturbing bats and to ensure you're not spreading WNS, or just plain donate some money to Bat Conservation International or the Nature Conservancy.

Do it for the baby bats!