Going Bat-ty

Now, brace yourselves.  No intolerance allowed! 

One of my friends who lives on a small ranch in Southern Arizona has visitors a couple of times a year as they migrate to and from Mexico.  She knows they're around when her many hummingbird feeders are empty every morning.  My picture taking friend (she of the darling Corgi puppies and banded hawk babies) took pictures a couple of weekends ago.

Most U.S. bats eat insects. A single bat can eat up to 1,200 mosquitoes in one hour. Some bats in the Southwestern U.S. also pollinate plants like the big saguaro cactus while drinking nectar.

Bats are one of the most prolific forms of mammals with over 900 species living in the world and making up over 20% of all mammals. Bats are the only form of mammal to have attained powered flight. Several mammals like flying squirrels glide but cannot stay in the air for long like bats can. In the United States there are 45 species of bats and seven species in the U.S. are in danger of extinction

Fewer than 0.5% of bats have rabies. Since 1960 there have only been 40 reported cases of humans getting rabies from bats.

During the summer, just at twilight, we will see a couple of bats flying over the swimming pool, grabbing a quick sip.  While I don't want one for a pet (thank you just the same), they do eat insects and polinate our Saguaro's.