\u201cThey do a lot of things that I think people don\u2019t realize,\u201d Curti said. \u201cAnd really in the pest control services that they provide for us, they prevent a lot of human illness. So they\u2019re kind of vital for the ecosystem. And I don\u2019t think we realize that because they\u2019re flying around at night and we never see them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Why this guy is leading night walks to spot bats in L.A.<\/p>\n
As the bat walkers assembled around Curti, he showed off an ultra-sonic microphone that would help them feel the presence of the bats even if they couldn\u2019t spot them with the naked eye or ear.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach bat here in the city emits a unique acoustic signature, just like a bird will sing and have a unique song, bats do the same thing,\u201d Curti said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Joseph Curti educates bat walkers. <\/p>\n
(<\/p>\n
Robert Garrova \/ LAist <\/p>\n
)<\/p>\n
As the bat students embarked along the paved L.A. River path, occasionally dodging nighttime cyclists like real-life frogger, Curti held up a tablet connected to his microphone that displayed visualizations of the sounds the bats make \u2014 kind of like the popular Merlin app you might use to identify birds in your neighborhood.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not long before we come across our first species, a Mexican free-tailed bat.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A Mexican free-tailed bat. <\/p>\n
(Note: While the bats pictured in this story were detected on acoustic devices \u2014 and sometimes briefly seen flying around \u2014 no bats were handled during the bat walk event.) <\/p>\n
Curti explained that we have as many as 21 species of bats here in L.A. Sometimes on these walks he comes across four or five in one night.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think a big majority of that is the fact that we have such a diverse vegetation community here,\u201d Curti said. \u201cWe have these big mature trees which can be roosts, but also support a lot of insects.”<\/p>\n
Coast live oaks are \u201cincredible\u201d trees that support bat diversity in our region, he added.<\/p>\n
As the long train of bat walkers pressed on, we came across another species. The acoustic detectors started clicking like space aliens talking in the night.<\/p>\n
\u201cWowww…\u201d the bat walkers said in awe.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s right overhead right now,\u201d Curti said, holding his acoustic-detecting instrument.<\/p>\n
This time it\u2019s a Yuma myotis bat, which Curti said weighs about 5 grams \u2014 the weight of two pennies \u2014 and is about 3.5 inches long.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A Yuma myotis bat<\/p>\n
(A note from the bat experts: “All bats [pictured in this story] were handled by trained wildlife biologists with appropriate state and federal permits and rabies vaccinations. To reduce the risk of harm to yourself and to bats, please only handle wildlife if you are trained and permitted to do so!”)<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s almost certainly just skimming the surface of the water, getting things like mosquito larvae,\u201d Curti said. \u201cYuma myotis, because they\u2019re such little squirts, they eat a lot of really small prey. Which means they tend to focus a lot on mosquitos… they\u2019re really pulling their weight to protect us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018Deserving of our protection\u2019<\/p>\n
Curti said he hopes these walks will educate people about the diversity of species flying right overhead. And how vital they are for the ecosystem, not just keeping down mosquito populations, but pollinating our crops and plants.<\/p>\n
Curti didn\u2019t have to work hard to convince bat walker Ed Rubin of the importance of bats. Rubin said he\u2019s been into the bats since 1985 and is up tonight from San Diego for this walk.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m a bit of a bat fanatic, Rubin said. \u201cI try to tell as many people as I can about the wonders of bats. Because they are deserving of our protection.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of the best things you can do to help out bats in your neighborhood? Curti said plant native plants that attract a diversity of bugs that bats like to eat.<\/p>\n
Curti points to a planting palette for bat-friendly gardens<\/a> from Bat Conservation International, as well as a list of plants pollinated by moths compiled by the Theodore Payne Foundation<\/a>. And since not everyone has a backyard, Theodore Payne Foundation also has a list of native plants that can thrive in container pots<\/a>.<\/p>\n