Some animals just get an unfair bad reputation. Even though these creatures actually help out humans and the environment in countless ways, they’re viewed as harmful or scary… and our negative perceptions can have a real impact on their species’ chances of survival.
That’s certainly true for bats, which have a number of negative associations—everything from diseases like rabies to blood-sucking vampires.
But our common fear of bats is based on misconceptions… and one bat rescue is out to educate the population on these creatures by showing how adorable they can be:
It’s true that a lot of people care more about animals that are “cute,” something that Bats QLD, a not-for-profit bat rescue organization based in the Gold Coast of Queensland, Australia, knows very well.
According to Bored Panda, they like to showcase how adorable bats can really be in order to spread awareness and inspire people to help.
Their pages are filled with precious photos of beautiful, wide-eyed baby bats, and the internet has fallen in love.
It’s never occurred to most people how cute bats are—most have never seen one up close.
But Bats QLD is also trying to dispel old misconceptions about the creatures.
“Bats have meaningful roles in pollination and seed dispersal,” a spokesperson told Bored Panda. “For example, the eucalyptus forest that the koalas rely on are pollinated by the flying foxes.”
They also help to control the insect population.
They also want to dispel the idea that bats are carriers and spreaders of disease.
“Bats in Australia only carry one disease that poses a risk to people directly from the animal which is Australian Bat Lyssa Virus,” the spokesperson said, adding that that disease has a vaccine and is only found in .01% of bats.
The organization hopes that making people love bats, and highlighting the good they do, will inspire people to protect these creatures from the urbanization that is increasingly threatening them.
“With increasing urbanisation, more man made hazards like barbed wire, power lines, domestic animals, cars and roads, and increasing heat events, Flying Fox numbers are declining at an alarming rate,” their site reads.
“Losing these wonderful animals will have catastrophic consequences to many other of our unique animals, especially tree-dwelling animals like koalas.”
Bats really are incredible creatures! We hope these photos inspire more people to care about this at-risk species.
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