Bats are the only mammals that are true fliers. They have special wings that are made of tough skin. They have fingers that spread and support the wings. The skeleton and soft parts of the wing are built very much like the arm and hand of a human. Birds are stronger fliers than bats, but bats have more flexibility and control, because they can move individual bones in their wings. Because most bats are nocturnal (awake at night) they do not glide. Take-offs are very difficult for bats. To make it easier, they roost in a high place and drop. In order to start flying right away, without hitting their wings on the cave wall, their feet are "on backwards".

        Bats live on all continents except Antarctica. They make up nearly one fourth of all mammals on earth. Because they are so different, scientists have put bats in a mammal order of their own, called Chiroptera, which means "hand-wing". All bat groups belong to one of two main suborders, the megabats and microbats.

        Megabats are fruit eating bats that live in tropical areas. They are larger in size than the microbats. Some have wingspans of nearly six feet. Often megabats are called flying foxes, because their faces look like those of foxes. Megabats have large eyes and do not depend on echolocation to fly or find food.

        Bats help us in many ways. They cut down on the insect population. They pollinate plants and spread seeds in their droppings as they fly. The floors of caves supply us with bat droppings, or guano, which are used for fertilizer. By studying bat behavior, scientists are finding more ways to help the blind in moving about. Research with vampire bats may lead to a way to thin the blood of heart patients.

        Since bats are so important, we need to take care of our bats. Only people who don’t know about bats would think they are dangerous. We know better.