Bats in Question: The Smithsonian Answer Book by Don E. Wilson(May 17, 1997) Paperback

by Don E. Wilson

Seeking to dispel the myths associated with these remarkable creatures and arguing far their key role in a balanced ecosystem, Bats in Question covers all aspects of bat biology in a practical question-and-answer format. Describing where bats live, how they use echolocation to navigate, and even why they hang upside down, the book also gives the conservation status of all 925 bat species. Don E. Wilson traces the evolution of bats and shows their remarkable diversity by describing each of the major groups in terms of their different body structures and habitats. He also sheds light on bats complex social systems, extraordinary variation in size, and food preferences that encompass plants, insects, and mammals. The book also explores cultural attitudes about bats - telling how, until recently, bats had been relegated to the world of vampires and how they have emerged to take their place in public awareness as important and fascinating members of our ecosystems. Illustrated with striking color photographs, this book invites both children and adults to better acquaint themselves with bats in order to understand the need to maintain viable populations of them in a rapidly shrinking natural world.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Natural History, Nature

Paperback

First published May 1, 1997

Reviews

[Jill H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bats have such an undeserved bad reputation but they are one of the most interesting mammals in the animal kingdom. This book puts aside some of the myths about bats and explains their lives and habits. This is a fairly short book but packed with information. Let me touch on a few facts that we may not know.

* They are the only mammal that flies. (Flying squirrels glide but do not fly)
* They usually only give birth to one baby in a breeding season.
* They have deciduous teeth as do humans
* Their leg joints move backwards, unlike other mammals, in order for them to hang upside down but be ready to fly.
* They do not fly into people's hair......one of the big myths about them.
* They do have voices and calls but are at such a pitch that they cannot be heard by the human ear.
* They can live as long as 30 years
* And the most amazing talent of the bat is their echolocation ability which scientists still study.

That is just a sample of information about this amazing animal. I have a colony of bats that roost in an outbuilding on my property and have watched them many times come out at twilight to feed. A fantastic sight indeed.

An interesting and informative book that I would recommend.

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite part of my early 90’s childhood trips to the zoo was roaming around the bat cave, following a dark and rocky path inside the home of nearly 500 screaming and chattering bats, who clung together upside down from the ceiling in bunches. The humid, sour and smelly air effectively kept my mum from entering the grotto with us, so we usually stayed there until we got pawned, after which mum came back into favor to wipe off the bat poop. God, I loved those bats!

That was until bats became, after having almost shed their Dracula reputation in the Western world, animals non grata for the second time in history.

A smoking gun may still be missing, it is assumed that bats initially caused Ebola outbreaks in Africa, including the current out-of-control one. Not as popular among journalists, but perhaps even more cause for concern, is the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), that is still making its deadly rounds in the Middle East. Camels may be the carriers of the virus, again evidence points into the direction of bats as the original culprits. And then there’s the Nipah virus that caused the death of hundred Malaysians back in the late 90’s and still pops up in Bangladesh every now and then. Again, bats. And let’s not forget about rabies..

Actually, in the article ‘bats and viral diseases’ that was published in Clinical Microbiology Reviews in 2006, scientists stated that bats are ‘extremely suitable for carrying viruses’. They are known to carry no less than 66 viruses, each and every one of them potentially harmful for other mammals, humans included.

Bats are, quite frankly, every virologist’s wet dream!



So how come bats don’t get terribly ill themselves, virus infested as they are? The main reasons are probably that bats have pretty much always been here. They have existed for millions of years. So you could say that this gave them a bit of a head start to become resistant to viruses that would (and do) wipe us out. And then there’s the fact that bats have always done what we humans only have just discovered; living in large groups. When humans starting sticking together, they became prone to epidemics (the Plague the best known example). Bats? Been there, done that.
The approach to try and destroy bats whenever an outbreak of some sort of virus occurs is therefore probably in no one’s best interest. Studying these little fellows who are a few steps ahead of us, seems a better strategy altogether.

Unfortunately, the latter was not to be for the bat colony from my youth. In the late 90’s, two of the bats were sold to a Denmark zoo, were they were diagnosed with rabies. Wrongly, so was later assumed. Rabies had never occurred before in this particular type of bat and further research showed that the population as a whole was perfectly healthy. The zoo’s visitors were never at risk. And yet, after much heated debate it was decided that all 500 bats were to be killed anyway. Since, the zoo has acquired a new, much smaller population of bats that are being kept behind glass.

Ain’t no pawning humans anymore for these bats.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bats are misunderstood creatures and this book does a great job of arguing their key role in a balanced ecosystem. It covers all aspects of bat biology in a practical question and answer format. Quite informatative with beautiful photography.

[Mel Luna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this up in the interpretive center of Craters of the Moon National Monument in Idaho because I LOVE bats so very much. There are some great photos - action shots, profiles of a wide variety of bats from around the world - which is why I had to have it.
The text is a strange combination of scientific and childish Q & A to dispel common myths. The long and short of it is this: we don't know much about bats, even though they are one of the most fascinating and diverse mammal groups on the planet. What we do know is that humans are causing their numbers to drop into extinction. From our toxic assault on their food sources (insects) to the destruction of their habitats (caves, tropical forests) things are not looking good for these incredible creatures. However, there are a few dedicated groups of bat lovers (scientists and citizens alike) championing their cause and educating the public little by little about their importance to the food system and their simple right to exist because they are ancient and amazing.

[Lizzy Hernandez · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you like informational text about bats, then this is the book for you. This book goes into detail about the different types of bats, where they reside, popular myths about them, and their diet. At the end there is a whole section for many of the species of bats. I found this book fascinating and very informational. If you are a visual person and you like to look at pictures, don't worry. There are plenty of pictures in the book.

[Astrid Yrigollen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bats in Question- This is mostly an informational book about Bats. I love them. I would recommend this book to anyone who is curious about the different breeds of bats there are and other general questions such as mating habits, feeding schedules etc.