And not just in The Dragondah Mysteries. Animals will always play starring roles in my children’s books. Or rather children will always play starring roles in my animal books. And not necessarily the cute animals or the fluffy animals or the anthropomorphic animals that star in TV shows. We humans must learn to live alongside all animals, is my way of thinking, not just our grateful pets and Shaun the Sheep.
Take the bat, for example. A much-maligned creature known neither for its countryside capers nor for its photogenic grin but more for its nocturnal drinking of our blood. Yet what a disservice we’re doing these brilliant creatures. After all there are well over 1,000 different species of bat in the world and less than a handful of them practise the dark art of hematophagy. (And anyway, vampire bats only tend to slurp the blood of unsuspecting Mexican or American cattle, so the rest of us can sleep easy in our beds. Especially if we pull the duvet over our heads.)
Yes, it’s far better to concentrate on all the blessings that bats bestow around the world, and let’s face it, these animals do seem to hold the future of the planet in their hands – or should I say their modified wings.
After all, can you pollinate a cacao, avocado and banana tree in the very same night, thereby ensuring children around the globe will never have to do without smoothies, guacamole, or Easter eggs? Can you swallow the seeds of kapok, rubber and Brazil nut trees and poop them out twenty miles later, thereby restocking an entire Amazon rainforest? Or can you eat your body weight in tropical insects, not only reducing the need for pesticides but also helping to control mosquito-borne diseases like Zika, West Nile and Chikungunya?
Bats are also the world’s only true flying mammal. Others like to talk a good game but, let’s face it, they can only really glide. (I’m talking about you, flying squirrels.) Bats also range in size from blink-and-you-miss them bumblebee bats the size of a coin to hefty flying fox bats with an impressive six-foot wingspan. They work hard every night while we’re fast asleep, most of them using high-pitched sounds to avoid crashing into buildings and tree trunks, not to mention the human beings of whom they’re understandably scared to death. In fact, military radar navigation systems were based on bats echolocation which is another big tick in their favour.
So, these are just a few of the reasons why I decided to include an enigmatic bat by the name of Shadow in my children’s books, The Dragondah Mysteries. To restore their reputation. And to beg human beings to leave these wonderful creatures the heck alone so that they can get on with the important job of saving the world.
This eulogy to bats was created with the help of factual information from wonderful websites like www.bats.org.uk. But if you’re still only sold on cute and fluffy creatures, I’d take a quick look at this YouTube video.
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