Hurricane Harvey threatens bat populations
As the flood waters rose in Houston, humans weren’t the only ones forced to evacuate their homes. According to Michelle Camara, owner of Southern Wildlife rehab, the Waugh Bridge shelters a quarter of a million Mexican free-tailed bats. Once the flood hit the bridge, residents reported hearing the trapped bats squeak for help and desperately try to swim away. The waters were particularly dangerous for bats as they cannot fly when wet and can barely tread water. The bats who did manage to get out of the water are still at risk for pneumonia.
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Houston residents come to this bridge every night to see the colony take flight at the viewing stands nearby. So, when they realized their nocturnal friends were in danger, local community members volunteered to help rescuers from Bat World. Using improvised rescue devices such as umbrellas and tennis rackets, they saved many bats from drowning. Bat World employees showed the citizens how to safely remove their winged-friends from the treacherous water and handle them properly.
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Losing the local bat population could also pose a danger to the area. Every night, that colony eats about 2.5 tons of insects according to the Houston Parks and Rec. Department. Without bats controlling the population, mosquitos could become a big problem due to all the stagnant water. Mosquitos in Texas have been known to carry West Nile and Zika viruses both of which are very dangerous. So, in saving the Houston bat population, citizens are also saving their own communities. This is a perfect example of how everything in biological communities are connected.