What does it mean that more than a million bats have been killed by White-nose Syndrome, that entire populations have been virtually wiped out, that extinctions are likely if solutions are not found? Clearly, losing these bats will have enormous impacts on ecosystems around the continent. But there is another cost – an often-crushing emotional toll on those who do battle with this unprecedented disaster day after...more

Southern Arizona residents have noticed for years that their hummingbird feeders were being drained during summer nights, when hummingbirds are supposed to be sleeping. The culprits, only occasionally spotted by their human benefactors, are bats. And that leads to an intriguing citizen-science project. Almost all of the 46 bat species in the United States eat insects...more

Bats have a well-deserved reputation as unusual animals. But even by bat standards, a fruit bat on the Caribbean islands of the Lesser Antilles is a rare find, reports Discover Magazine online.

A genetic analysis reveals that the bat species Artibeus schwartzi is “a hybrid mish-mash of DNA inherited from no less than three separate ancestors.” The complicated ancestry of the species has puzzled scientists for almost...more