Bailey tells me he has "brought down specimens on the wing with the young 

 clinging to them. Imagine the haby aviator riding on goch a stunt flight 

 as that of a mother hat in hot pursuit of her dodging proy I If there are 

 any thrills in flying for a hat, the young must get them early I There are 

 records, Mr, Bailey says, of old hats talcen with two ftad even foior yoimg 

 clinging to the mother, but one seems to be the regular number, with most 

 epeci es. 



Bats hanging upside down, as they do in the daytime may seem odd and 

 foolish to yo'a. But Mr. Bailey points out that if you hold a bat in that po~ 

 sition, you can notice that the folded wing forms a poclcet or cradle where 

 the little nursing baby bats can rest without even holding on. 



Part of the time we have been talking about bats as if they were all 

 the same kind; bat, of course, there are different kinds of bats Just as there 

 are different kinds of birds, though there are not as many varieties of bats. 



In bats from regions with mild climates, the inside of the wing which 

 forms the resting cradle for the young is either entirely naked or has only 

 the bottom of the pocket fur lined. In some of the more northern bats, hov;~ 

 ever, that folded-wing cradle is well lined with soft fur. 



The young bats, however, can fly for themselves before they are full 

 grown and they don*t need their fur-lined cradles and winged baby carriages 

 long. 



Many bats migrate from one region to another, as do birds, but we 

 know very little about the comings and goings of our different species of 

 bats. 



Some live in caves, others, such as the pi^ny or little canyon bats 

 of the Southwest, are rarely fo\md far from the rocky walls of canyons or 

 cliffs. Others, such as the big hoary bats, are usually found within reach 

 of timber ejid spend the day hanging in the dense folia-?;e of the trees. Tho 

 brown bats are forest bats too; they are also found aro.nd buildings, but 

 not around cliffs or caves. On the other hand, some of the so-called "house" 

 bats are also known to be cave bats. 



All of them, in this country, eat only insects, and when twilight 

 comes they sot out on the nightly air hunt. Tho first iMng most of them do 

 is to head fcr water. They apparently Wciko thirsty, and make a beo-linc for 

 water, where thay skim over the surface and in a few dips scoop up enough to 

 satisfy them. Then they are ready to police our airways against destructive 

 insects. 



Because bats operate under cloak of darkness, many of their habits are 

 still unknown. But from what we do know of them, it seems that they are more 

 fit to be classed with the good fairies than with the witches. 



MiroUNCHffiNT: The program to which you have just listened is a presentation 

 of Station a nd tho United States Pepai^tment of Agriculture. We will 



have another visit with Uncle Sam»s Natiu-alists two weeks from today. 



