The Topic: Bats If you need to find websites about individual types or species of bats, then click here (Bat Species) to connect to our companion webpage. There you will find lots of websites - - too many to fit here.   Easier - Bats are the only mammals that fly. They have furry bodies and thin, leathery wings. Bats hang upside down when they are resting. Bats sleep during the day and come out at night to feed. Bats find their way by making high-pitched squeaks and clicks. The echoes of these noises are picked up by sensitive ears and used to guide them around.   Harder - Bats dwell in caves, attics, crevices, or other sheltered places. A few species live in trees. Bats seem uncommon because they roost in dark habitats and come out only at night; therefore, they are rarely seen. Night creatures are called nocturnal.   Over 900 species of bats live in all parts of the world except Antarctica and the Arctic. Most bats are found in the tropic regions, where they can find food the year around. About 40 species of bats live in Canada and the United States.   Many people fear bats. Through the centuries, people have passed on superstitions, myths, and misunderstandings about bats. For example, consider the false expression 'blind as a bat.' In fact, all bats can see probably about as well as humans. Beliefs that bats carry bedbugs and get tangled in people's hair are also untrue. At night, they will try to fly out a window if they find themselves in a room. Bats are usually timid. Most bats are harmless to people. However, some bats can have rabies; therefore, bats should not be handled without protective measures.   Bat Conservation http://www.batconservation.org/ This organization provides information about the value of bats and protecting bats. Related Organizations: 2) Bat Conservation and Management http://www.batmanagement.com/ 3) Bat Conservation International http://www.batcon.org./ 4) Friends of Bats http://www.friendsofbats.com/   Bat Thematic Unit http://intergate.cccoe.k12.ca.us/bats/ This school resource connects to all kinds of information, resources, and activities about bats. 2) Bats Bats Everywhere http://members.aol.com/bats4kids/ 3) Bats Theme Page from Gander Academy http://www.stemnet.nf.ca/CITE/bats.htm 4) Batty about Bats http://dep.state.ct.us/burnatr/wildlife/kids/kpbats.htm   How Bats Work by T. Harris at HowStuffWorks http://www.howstuffworks.com/bat.htm?printable=1 Bats really stand out in the animal world. They are the only mammals that can fly, and they live much of their lives hanging upside down. Separate the myth from reality! Related Websites: 2) Aerodynamics of Bats by Cislunar Aerospace, Inc. http://wings.avkids.com/Book/Animals/intermediate/bats-01.html 3) Why Do Bats Fly At Night? http://www.pa.msu.edu/~sciencet/ask_st/102997.html National Geographic Creature Feature: Vampire Bats http://www.nationalgeographic.com/kids/creature_feature/0110/vampirebats.html Explore fun facts, videos, audio, maps, and other information about bats. Related Websites: 2) Bats http://www.eparks.org/wildlife_protection/wildlife_facts/bats/ 3) Bats: Creatures of the Night http://www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/notes/bats.html 4) Big Brown Bat http://www.nature.ca/notebooks/english/bigbat.htm ) World Almanac for Kids: Bats http://www.worldalmanacforkids.com/explore/animals/bat.html 6) Wild Lives: Bats http://www.awf.org/wildlives/62   After visiting lots of the bat websites, complete one or more of these 'batty' projects:   Complete Some Bat Art. Go to the Big Brown Bat Coloring Page. Print out the page and follow the directions. You may also want to complete some of the activities found at Bat Art.   Teach Stellaluna. Read the book called Stellaluna by Janell Cannon. The book is about a bat who grows up with a bird family and must learn how to be a bat. Learn more about bats, then brainstorm ways to help Stellaluna be bat. Create a Venn Diagram comparing birds and bats.   Fun Bat Activities. Visit Bat Fun for Kids and Adults! from About.com to select from bat word searches, crossword puzzles, facts, bat projects, and other activities. Another bat word search is located at Bats.   Complete A Batty WebQuest. Adapt or follow the instructions found at one of the following webQuest sites: 1) Bat Quest: In Search of Stellaluna by D. Von Feldt-Vo (Grades 2-3) http://projects.edtech.sandi.net/chavez/batquest/navigator.html 3) Bats by D. Mentzer and M. Rohrer (Grades 5-6) http://www.allabery.com/courses/webquest/bats/ 7) Lessons On Bats by D. Blackmer (Scroll down page) http://www.mhcbe.ab.ca/st_francis/RR/lesson_on_bats.htm 9) Stellaluna: 'The Big Bat Hunt' (Grade 2) by H. Hunt, L. Pinedo, and E. McLennan http://www2.tltc.ttu.edu/butler/Student-Webquests/stellaluna-home.htm 10) World of Bats by K. King (Grade 2) http://webtech.kennesaw.edu/kking/wquest.htm   Write Some Bat Poetry. You can find some help at the EduScapes companion 42eXplore site: Poetry for Kids. Also read bat poetry at the Bat Poet Page. Share your bat poems with others.   Take A Bat Quiz. Test your knowledge of bats at the Bat Quiz from the University of California or Bats: Online Quiz. Try your hand at Label Bat External Anatomy from Enchanted Learning.   Build A Bat House. Bat populations are declining at an alarming level. Help preserve these important animals. Start by visiting helpful sites like Answers to Frequently Asked Bat House Questions, Bat Conservation and Management, Criteria for Successful Bat Houses, Small Economy Bat Houses, and Bat Houses from organizations for bat conservation. Another design plan can be found at Rocket Box Bat House Design. Then build your own bat house and place it in a good location.   Read An Online Bat Adventure. Read the online Story of Echo the Bat (Grades 5-8) by G. Butcher from NASA. Along the way you will learn about bats plus find out more about remote sensing or the electromagnetic spectrum.   Create A Bat Conservation Poster. Help save bats. Create an eye-catching poster that promotes the protection and better understanding of bats.     Websites By Kids For Kids Bats: Misunderstood Characters http://www.k12.nf.ca/sptech/bats/ This website was created by students to reveal the secrets of these amazing creatures to others. This page will give you a better understanding of bats, making it easier for you to read and comprehend Kenneth Oppel's 'Silverwing.'   Ghostbat by N. Nikolovski http://www.schoolworld.asn.au/species/ghostbat.html At this website you can learn about the large, cannibalistic bat that is native to northern Australia.   Goin' Batty (1999 ThinkQuest Junior Project) http://tqjunior.thinkquest.org/5813/ This bat project was designed to help erase the myths and educate people about these extraordinary animals.   Indiana Bat http://www.siec.k12.in.us/cannelton/indianabat.htm Here you have a bat report by third graders in Cannelton, Indiana. the site includes a fun quiz, bat house building information, an interview with a bat expert, and more.   Other Bat Websites Bat Detective http://www.batdetective.com/ This bat site from Ireland contains information, photos, links, and more.   Bats at Hinterland Who's Who from the Canadian Wildlife Service http://www.cws-scf.ec.gc.ca/hww-fap/bats/bats.html Check out this information about bats found in Canada.   Bats from Jaguar Paw Resort http://www.jaguarpaw.com/Bats.html Read about the natural history of bats, vampire bats, bat conservation, and much more. Another Online Article on Bats: 2) Bats Battle Maligned Mammal Moniker from CNN http://www7.cnn.com/EARTH/9704/09/beloved.bats/ 3) Go bats! by N.M. Kendall of the Christian Science Monitor http://www.csmonitor.com/durable/1999/03/30/fp22s1-csm.shtml 4) What's So Bad About BATS? by S. Chastain from Franklin Institute http://sln.fi.edu/inquirer/bats.html   Buzbee Bat House Temperature Plot http://batbox.org/ Read about a man's adventures of first building a bat habitat and then getting the mammals to live there. The site also has hundreds of links to other bat sites.   Chiroptera: Night Fliers from University of California at Berkeley http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/mammal/eutheria/chiroptera.html Learn more about these small, furry mammals -- the only mammals to have achieved powered flight.   Desert Bats from DesertUSA http://www.desertusa.com/jan97/du_bats.html Learn about the various types of bats that inhabit the southwestern deserts of the U.S. Related Websites: 2) Bats of San Diego County http://home.earthlink.net/~cmsquare/ 4) Guide to Missouri Cave Bats by W.R. Elliott and R.L. Clawson http://www.nps.gov/ozar/batkey.htm 6) Missouri Cave Bats http://www.umsl.edu/~joellaws/ozark_caving/mss/bats.htm 7) Night Wings: Bats of Austin http://www.io.com/house/bats.html 9) Oklahoma Bats. . . Coming Out of the Dark http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/othrdata/okbats/okbats.htm   Introduction to Bats from the US Fish and Wildlife Service http://endangered.fws.gov/bats/bats.htm This informative bat site contains lots of bat facts and photos, information on the six species of bats protected under the Endangered Species Act, and more.   So You Want To Know About Bats from The Organization for Bat Conservation http://www.batconservation.org/content/kidspage/kidspage.htm Here is a list of facts about bats that is written specifically for kids. Similar Websites: 2) Amazing Bat Facts from Bats of San Diego County http://home.earthlink.net/~cmsquare/batfacts.html   What To Do If You Find an Injured Bat from the California Bat Conservation Fund http://www.californiabats.com/injured.html Here you find good advice for helping any injured or stray bats in your home. Other Related Websites: 2) Bats in Buildings from Bat Conservation International, Inc. http://www.batcon.org/binb/index.html 3) Dealing With Unwanted Guests from Bat Conservation International, Inc. http://www.batcon.org/discover/unguest.html   Websites For Teachers Bats by B. McCarthy (Grade 2) http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Academy/7628/introf98p3.html#McCarthy Here is a introductory unit plan for study of bats using the book, Stellaluna by J. Cannon.   Bats in the Classroom: Activities Across the Curriculum from Education World http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/lesson031.shtml October -- the perfect time to work bats into the curriculum, to teach about some of the misconceptions often held about these interesting creatures of nature.   Bats: Creatures of the Night by M. Claeys (Grade 2) http://www.ed.uiuc.edu/YLP/96-97/96-97_mini_units/Bats_MClaeys/bat.html This unit on bats expands the concepts of observing and classifying. Studying bats allow students to consider the physical differences between the two main groups of bats, provides a means for learning to compare different animals and their features, and encourages the use of technical and scientific terminology.   Bats Theme from A to Z TeacherStuff http://atozteacherstuff.com/themes/bats.shtml This links site connects to a number of lesson and unit plans and activities for studying about bats. Similar Website: 2) Bats Theme Page: Teacher Resources from Gander Academy http://www.stemnet.nf.ca/CITE/batsteacher.htm   bats wingspan echolocation furry body flight hang upside-down creatures of the night nocturnal thin skin cave hibernate owl thumb predator 'hand wing' fat reserve 4-digit guano 'bat radar' insect Chiroptera bat house pollination migrate microbat megabat conservation high pitch roost Halloween squeak click dawn dusk insecticide flying mammal        Created by Annette Lamb and Larry Johnson, 10/01. Updated 9/05.