Authors: Winifred F. Frick and M. Teague O’mara
The only mammals capable of flight, bats are found on every major continent on the planet.
They perform crucial roles in the ecosystems they inhabit, from consuming insect pests over agricultural crops and forests to pollinating night-flowering plants, dispersing seeds in tropical biomes, and recycling nutrients and creating natural fertilizer.
Many of the world’s 1,400 species are threatened or endangered due to habitat destruction, climate change, and persecution arising from harmful myths.
