– Christine Gelley, Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator, Noble County OSU Extension
The logo of the Ohio Bat Working Group
Twenty percent of all mammal species worldwide are bats. Ohio is home to ten different types of bats. These creatures fulfill important roles in our ecosystems.
A single bat can consume its body weight in insects each night. Bats are found everywhere on Earth aside from the extreme desert and polar regions. Some are even responsible for pollinating popular crops.
The perfect pairing for a Halloween celebration is National Bat Week, which is held from October 24 to October 31.
Noble County OSU Extension will be celebrating bat week on social media all next week. Bat facts paired with pumpkin carving, building a bat box, and perspective to aide understanding threats to bat habitats and colonies will be shared on the Extension Office Facebook page every day at Noon. Follow the Facebook page online at https://www.facebook.com/osuenoble.
Bat Conservation International has stated that:
“Worldwide, about 24% of bats are considered critically endangered, endangered, or vulnerable. Bat numbers in the United States and Canada have declined dramatically as a new disease, White-Nose Syndrome (WNS), has killed over six million bats in just eight years. This, coupled with impact from wind energy, habitat alteration, and roost disturbances, has caused serious decline in bat populations in North America as well as around the world.”
Resources to plan your participation in National Bat Week are available online from Bat Conservation International at https://batweek.org/ and the Ohio Bat Working Group at https://u.osu.edu/obwg/.
Join us in the celebration!