bats

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Who's the Most Gorgeous Bat Around? You Decide

Bureau of Land Management holds its annual online beauty contest for the flying mammals

(Newser) - Move over, Fat Bear Week . A bat beauty contest is now stepping up to the plate. The Bureau of Land Management has hosted the online competition since 2019 to raise awareness about the animal's ecological importance. The federal agency posts photos of bats on its Facebook and Instagram accounts,...

Child Dies of Rabies After Bat Gets Into House

Parents saw no indication of a bite or scratches, Canadian health official says

(Newser) - "They woke up with a bat in their bedroom," a Canadian health official said of a child in Ontario. The parents saw no signs of a bite or scratches so did not take their child to receive the rabies vaccine, Dr. Malcolm Lock said, per the BBC . The...

In This State, a Rare Human Death From Rabies

Person over the age of 65 was exposed to bat in July, per Minnesota's Department of Health

(Newser) - A Minnesota resident who came into contact with a bat in July died of rabies, the state's Department of Health announced Friday. The person's death marks a rare occurrence, as fewer than 10 people in the US die from rabies each year, according to the CDC. The person...

Want to Save Babies? Protect Bats
In Bat Die-Off, Human
Infants Also Paid the Price
NEW STUDY
Sep 7, 2024 8:00 AM CDT

In Bat Die-Off, Human Infants Also Paid the Price

New research shows that when bats died of fungal disease, infants also died, possibly due to pesticide

(Newser) - When a deadly fungal disease from Europe spread to bats in the United States, killing off colonies of the creatures, one scientist wanted to see what such a bat die-off would mean in other ways. What the University of Chicago's Eyal Frank found: that in counties where infected bats...

Man Films Bat Sex in Church, Makes Surprise Discovery
Man Films Bat Sex in Church,
Makes Surprise Discovery
in case you missed it
Nov 25, 2023 2:15 PM CST

Man Films Bat Sex in Church, Makes Surprise Discovery

Serotine bat thought to be only known mammal to have sex without penetration

(Newser) - There was a lot of sex happening in the church attic—but without humans and, weirdly, without penetration. Indeed, as scientists describe in a new study, it was the first time a mammal—specifically, the serotine bat native to Europe and Asia—was documented reproducing without penetrative sex. Scientists had...

Women Sue After Airbnb Turns Into 'House of Horror'

Suit against rental site, Michigan homeowners comes after women say they were attacked by bats

(Newser) - According to its Airbnb listing, the "Castle House" in Alpena, Michigan, is an "incredible historic home" that's "bursting with charm." According to a group of eight women who rented the abode earlier this year, the place is actually like a "horror movie," complete...

If You Think Mariah Can Sing, You Haven't Heard These Bats
Bats Share Something
Big With Death Metal Singers
NEW STUDY
Dec 2, 2022 12:10 PM CST

Bats Share Something Big With Death Metal Singers

Study cites creatures' 'tremendous' 7-octave vocal range that even surpasses Mariah Carey's, Prince's

(Newser) - If you remain impressed (and you should) by the multioctave vocal range shown by Mariah Carey, Axl Rose, and the late Prince, there's a group of crooners that may awe you even more. A new study out of the University of Southern Denmark points to the "tremendous" vocal...

How to Stop a Virus That Goes From Bats to Horses to Humans

A new study shares a theory, and it involves winter flowers

(Newser) - It's a deadly chain: Bats in Australia harbor a virus called Hendra, which doesn't hurt them but can be passed to horses via urine or feces—and those animals fare far worse. There's a 75% fatality rate, though cases are fairly rare. Even more rare is the...

Woman's Video of 'Delicious' Meal Earns Her an Arrest

Thai woman gleefully pulled wings off bat, scarfed it down

(Newser) - A Thai woman who wanted to go viral got her wish, and now she's apparently in big legal trouble after showing herself eating a bat on camera. Phonchanok Srisunaklua, who has identified herself as a teacher, posted a clip Monday on her Facebook and TikTok pages showing her supping...

Here's How Vampire Bats Got a Taste for Blood
Here's How Vampire Bats
Got a Taste for Blood
NEW STUDY
Mar 28, 2022 9:10 AM CDT

Here's How Vampire Bats Got a Taste for Blood

There are 13 genes that are missing or no longer work in vampire bats

(Newser) - Scientists have figured out why vampire bats are the only mammals that can survive on a diet of just blood. They compared the genome of common vampire bats to 26 other bat species and identified 13 genes that are missing or no longer work in vampire bats, reports the AP...

Surprise Guest Shows Up at Batman Screening

Real bat in Texas theater may have been released as a prank

(Newser) - Moviegoers in Austin, Texas, got to see more than one type of bat during a screening of The Batman this weekend, per the AP . An actual bat was spotted swooping around inside the theater, putting the movie on pause while management called animal control and tried—unsuccessfully—to get the...

Surprise: Winner of Bird Contest Isn't Actually a Bird

A bat sneaks in and takes top honors in New Zealand

(Newser) - Did somebody miss a meeting? Maybe a day or two of biology class? Somehow the winner of New Zealand’s Bird of the Year contest isn’t even a bird, reports the New York Times . The winning critter has wings, for sure, but bats don’t lay eggs and they...

Illinois Man Who Refused Treatment Dies of Rabies

Thomas Krob reportedly awoke last month to find a bat on his neck

(Newser) - Illinois' first human case of rabies in 67 years turned into a fatal one. An elderly Lake County resident who awoke in mid-August to find a bat on his neck has died of the disease after declining medical treatment, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. The man—identified...

COVID Jumped From Bats to Animal to Humans: WHO

Joint report with China finds that virus likely didn't originate in a lab

(Newser) - A joint China-World Health Organization study on the origins of COVID-19 says that transmission of the virus from bats to humans through another animal is the most likely scenario and that a lab leak is "extremely unlikely," according to a draft obtained by the AP . The findings offer...

'Shocking' Find Made at Government Labs

PETA demands an audit at all National Institutes of Health laboratories

(Newser) - Mice cooked to death. Primates holed up in a room with 24-hour-a-day lights. An owl, denied veterinary care, that dies in a cage. These are among the 31 incidents uncovered through a freedom-of-information request about animal-welfare failures in government labs in 2018 and 2019—labs where official inspections are never...

He'd Find Bats on His Bed and Handle Them. Now He's Dead

Gary Giles first person to die from rabies in Utah since 1944

(Newser) - Gary Giles and his wife, Juanita, would often use their hands to catch the bats that would end up flying around inside their home in Moroni, Utah, and they never had any issues. "The bats would lick our fingers, almost like they could taste the saltiness of our fingers,...

Australia Is So Hot That Bats Are 'Boiling'

Nation's extreme heat taking a toll on flying foxes

(Newser) - This is the other-side-of-the-world counterpoint to the bizarre sight of frozen iguanas in last week's deep freeze in the US: Hundreds of bats in Australia are essentially boiling to death in the nation's extreme heat . A conservation group near Sydney, where temperatures recently reached 117 degrees, says that...

Salad Mix Included Bat: Report
Salad Mix Included
a Bat: Report 
Apr 9, 2017 7:31 AM CDT

Salad Mix Included a Bat: Report

CDC can't rule out rabies; 2 people in Florida being treated

(Newser) - A bag of salad mix went a little heavier on the "mix" than the "salad," reports CNN . Two people in Florida are now being treated for rabies exposure after finding a dead bat in a bag of Fresh Express Organic Marketside Spring Mix. Just in case you...

Flying Fox Invasion Drives Town Batty

'The smell is so bad ... we can actually taste it'

(Newser) - Batemans Bay, Australia, is a picturesque coastal town that always leaves the welcome mat out for tourists. But tens of thousands of visitors of another kind have more than outstayed their welcome—large bats. Residents feel trapped in their guano-coated houses, and those who venture outside soon feel a disgusting...

Florida Regulator Booted From Office by Bat Guano

Ten pounds of feces was found in his office ceiling

(Newser) - One of Florida's top regulators is being ordered to stay away from his office because of 10 pounds of bat guano discovered above his desk Thursday, the AP reports. Inspectors say they found the bat feces in the area above the ceiling in Ken Lawson's office. Lawson is...

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