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by Thea Markus (8th grade)

Bumble Bees or bats?            

This is obviously the toughest question out there.

Are Bumble Bees or Bats bat-ter? Why not just have both? 

Bumblebee Bats or Kitti’s Hog-Nosed bats are the worlds smallest bat and mammal with an average body length of one inch and they weigh about two grams.

Now you might be thinking “Oh no! It’s going to sting me and I’m going to die!!”

Don’t you worry your pretty little pinkie perfect priceless head off. They are harmless and don't have stingers like bees. They actually have no relation to bees other than their size which is why they are named “bumblebee bats.”

Un-BEE-lievable right?

Their homes or roosts are located mainly in western Thailand and southeast Myanmar and they prey on BEE-tles, flies, and spiders. Birds, snakes, squirrels, cats, and some humans find these precious little creatures to be a yummy snack.

Unfortunately for their predators, these adorable little animals are endangered with around 200-2000 of them left in the world.

This is not only a problem for their predators but also for their environments; they help control the insect and bug population due to their hunger for sauteed spider legs and fruit fly salad.

These bats don't have tails like other bats, and they have upturned noses like that of a pig or a hog's nose, so it's pretty easy to tell them apart from other bats.

However, they don’t feel too alone: they give birth the same way as other bats!

Everyone loves babies, and everyone loves bumblebee bats so why not have both?

So say goodbye to babies and hello to Ba-bats!

Normally, bumblebee bats mate with someone new once a year… They must spend a lot of money on their honey-moons.

A mother will usually give birth during April. They only give birth to one bat at a time, unlike many other animal species that give birth to multiple babies at once.

Baby bats are called pups, they usually stay in the roost while the mother goes out hunting or they will cling to their mother for dear life thinking that they’re bat-ter as a team while she flies through the sea of insects that she calls food.

Bumblebee bats can start reproducing at only 18 months old! This is good though because now they can watch their kid grow up before they die at 10 years old. This lifespan might be the reason why they are endangered but they are losing their habitats BEE-cause of humans.

 That's gotta sting.

If you like cute things and want to get rid of pesky insects, then stop clearing forests and don’t be sorry about it… Be bat-ter.

Image Citation

Hargreaves, Daniel. "Kitti Hog-nosed Bat." SciTechDaily. Accessed 4-25-2023 https://scitechdaily.com/kittis-hog-nosed-bat-is-worlds-smallest-mammal/