Mammals of Flight
 Bats
display the finest aerial acrobatics during nocturnal insect pursuits.
These winged mammals are capable of darting around gigantic Douglas-fir
trees, spiraling up into the canopy between branch and moss, sipping
water from a small forest tributary on the fly and ceasing a moth's
wing beat through a quiet capture in its membranous tail skin.
Each summer evening, look up into the sky and scan for small darting
airborne creatures. Why do bats live near you? Can you locate the
shelters they use for habitat? Why did bats shortly after the end
of the dinosaurs, take flight from crawling among tree branches
and begin their ceaseless consumption of insects around the globe?
Why are bats important to forest ecosystems in North Cascades National
Park?
Scientists have devised ingenious methods for getting a few answers
to these and other questions about bats. Look at the technological
methods that have been developed for bat research under the Eagle
Eye below.
One of the most important questions about bats is: on what type
of habitat do bats depend? Over the past few years this question
has been specifically studied at North Cascades National Park. If
scientists know what type of habitat bats need, they will be able
to better protect their homes. Explore the activity Batting 500
to understand more about bat habitats at North Cascades. Using the
data, see if you can make a hypothesis of your own.
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Critical
Thinking: 