With a hurricane like Harvey, it’s not just humans that need help – but some of the wildlife as well. Melissa Breyer of Treehugger.com reports why helping bats is helping the human inhabitants of Houston:
So why the sudden focus on bats? Sure, there are bat lovers for whom this might be of particular interest – compassion is compassion. But there are people and pets in dire need of attention. Yet here’s the thing: The Waugh Bridge colony eats around two and a half tons of insects every night. Without them, Houston’s mosquito population would look very different. Popular Science writes, “A dead bat is a bat that can no longer consume huge meals made of Houston’s mosquitoes – mosquitoes that may lead to a proliferation of diseases after the flood.”
It’s not that bats completely suppress the mosquitoes, but rather than they are kept at a level that is manageable. Stirring up the system through an injection of a huge amount of energy in the form of Harvey disturbs the current static system – and means humans may suffer more than just the direct hit from Harvey.
