They are mostly harmless !

Getting away from storybooks, bats are in fact both useful to humans, and helpful, and don't deserve the bad reputation they have. Though they may appear demon-like, they are mostly harmless, and their diet consists greatly of insects (yes-even mosquitoes) and they also help pollinate various plants. Apart from the vampire bats mentioned, which do in fact drink blood (usually only animals blood) and spread disease, most bats eat only fruits, insects and other small rodents.

Bats can vary greatly in size, from the smallest at about 3cm (Thailand) to the largest at 5.5 feet (Java). Costa Rica has too many species to cover here in detail, but if you go out searching, you are bound to find many varieties right in your back yard. Sometimes it is difficult to tell whether those are birds or bats you are seeing, but once you begin to notice them, you may find there are some very interesting varieties here.

The Bulldog Bat can catch fish !

For example one fascinating species can be found in Tortuguero. With about a 2- foot wingspan, the Fishing Bulldog Bat can catch fish by sonar, skimming the water and detecting slight ripples in the surface. But really all bats are fascinating when one watches them in flight, and their aerial maneuvers are amazing. They are able to fly at much lower speeds than birds, with greater maneuverability. This is due to the unique structure of their wings, which enables them to vary the convexity dramatically, and vary their aerodynamic lift.

Larger varieties, or megabats, use vision !

Most bats can in fact "see" acoustically, by echolocation. That is that they emit high frequency sounds that bounce off the surrounding surfaces back to the bats ears, relaying position, relative distance, and character of the objects. Larger varieties, or megabats, use vision instead of echolocation, but this variety is found in other parts of the world. The echolocation is how bats are able to fly in complete darkness, but to dispel another myth, no bats are blind, and any species may use visual landmarks for homing during flight.

Bats really are a fascinating species, and the next time you are out walking at dusk watch for them. I hope you will find them a little less scary, and maybe even stop to admire them for a minute or two. And maybe we can all try to be a little less "blind" about the realities of these incredible creatures of the night.

© El Residente ARCR Administración S.A. San José, Costa Rica N.B. Like all information on the internet, this article may currently be incorrect or out of date.