Economic Importance of Bats in Agriculture
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Publication Date
April 2011
Abstract
White-nose syndrome (WNS) and the increased development of wind-power facilities are threatening populations of insectivorous bats in North America. Bats are voracious predators of nocturnal insects, including many crop and forest pests. We present here analyses suggesting that loss of bats in North America could lead to agricultural losses estimated at more than $3.7 billion/year. Urgent efforts are needed to educate the public and policy-makers about the ecological and economic importance of insectivorous bats and to provide practical conservation solutions.
Keywords
Economic Importance, Bats, Agriculture
Document Type
Article
Notes
Science, Vol. 332, no. 6025 (2011-04-01).
Identifier
SFS0069643_00001
Recommended Citation
Boyles, Justin G.; Cryan, Paul M.; and McCracken, Gary F., "Economic Importance of Bats in Agriculture" (2011). KIP Articles. 1548.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/kip_articles/1548