You might shudder at the sight of bats in your yard, but the reason they've arrived -- and why you'd want to attract them -- isn't quite what you'd think.

When you picture a flower and a pollinator, the odds are you’re imagining a colorful, perfumed flower, and a honeybee.

More information: Nathan Muchhala et al, Making yourself heard: why well‐exposed flowers are an adaptation for bat pollination, New Phytologist (2024). DOI: 10.1111/nph.20075 Provided by Wiley ...

However, the large size of bats can also make pollination by them energetically expensive for plants. One example is the endangered greater long-eared bat, native to the south-western US and Mexico.

Bats pollinate about 528 species of plants. More than 80 percent of plant species are dependent on pollinators. At least 30 percent of 1,500 crop species worldwide depend on pollinators.

Concern around declining bat population exists because bats are beneficial to our ecosystem. Bats benefit the agriculture ...

Bats are efficient pollinators as they are able to transport large amounts of pollen on their furry bodies. Plants have evolved to hang away from the plant to give easier access to incoming bats.

These bats are beneficial to the state, helping with insect control and pollination. Bats pollinate through their elongated snouts and tongues. This helps them take on a collection of nectar.

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Did you know that the Mexican free-tailed bat is Texas’ official flying mammal? These bats are beneficial to the state, helping with insect control and pollination. Bats ...