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What are the myths, and facts, about bats?
Accused of numerous ills by men, associated with funereal myths, these bats nevertheless render great services to humans... Welcome to "Animal", the series which focuses on animals in the city, and the relationships between these animals and we.
For the last episode of this season of "Animal", we go to meet Xavier Japiot, naturalist ecologist, responsible for studying biodiversity, at the direction of green spaces and the environment of the City of Paris.
Let's talk with him about the bats living in the city, so close and sometimes so far from humans...
Bats visible in the city
“Bats are everywhere around us, reports Xavier Japiot.
In the city, we can find them in different habitats such as woods, parks and gardens, in building courtyards, even above our buildings, ”underlines the ecologist.
In particular, you can see them near lampposts near which insects fly, even if the darkness is not complete.
Does the bat have objective reasons to be associated with the vampiric legend Dracula, bloodsucker?
"The bat has a bad press with us, it's linked to ancient myths of vampirism, answers Xavier Japiot.
For [bat] vampires, there are only three true vampire species, which are not in Europe, but live in tropical America, some of them in Guyana.
In mainland France, all species [of bats] are essentially insectivorous.
These are species from which we have absolutely nothing to fear, ”he specifies.
Animals collecting disease-carrying insects
The naturalist celebrates these "extraordinary animals" that are bats.
“It's an animal that can collect nearly 200,000 insects in 200 days of activity.
In terms of combating specific diseases, such as chikungunya, the tiger mosquito, all insect-related diseases, this limits their impact.
These are animals that provide a lot of services,” stresses Xavier Japiot.
As for the story of bats clinging to the hair of humans, it is totally false, says the ecologist.
“The bat doesn't care about us!
he exclaims.
To find out more about bats, all the answers in this podcast.
Good listening !
Find all the episodes of the “Animal” series in the “Summer in your ears” podcast… Listen for free on your favorite podcast app, and on 20minutes.fr in the “podcast” section.
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