African straw-colored fruit bats (Eidolon helvum) in a tree, Kenya, Africa. courtesy of Canadian Institute For Bat Research
African straw-colored fruit bats (Eidolon helvum) in a tree, Kenya, Africa. courtesy of Canadian Institute For Bat Research
Chatham

Chatham Kent High School Students Go Batty

Students from Chatham Kent High School have once again done their part for the environment by building dozens of bat boxes.

Randall Van Wagner is with the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority and says the school's Environment Club built about 50 boxes where bats can nest, keep the mosquitoes away and hibernate.

Van Wagner says the boxes will greatly help preserve their population because it's dwindling.

"They're really beneficial and helps the bat out.  Bats are pretty helpful to humans for many reasons, one of them being insect control.  They can eat up to a thousand mosquitoes or moths in an hour and about six thousand per night," says Van Wagner.

Van Wagner says there's a 40% decline in bats worldwide and in Ontario, the Eastern Small-Footed Bat has declined by 80%.

Van Wagner says bats help control insects.

"They're a lot like snakes in that regard.  They provide pest control free of charge and basically on notice.  So, quite beneficial,"  Van Wagner says.

 

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