118 
FINDING NATURE’S TREASURES 
cat, the dog, the rabbit, and the cow are called mammals,” 
explained Uncle Jack. “The mother bat flies, but she 
also feeds her babies milk; so we call her a flying 
mammal.” 
“Urn surely glad you told us, Uncle Jack, what a bat 
really is,” said Marylee. “We are looking at its back 
now, aren't we? I want to see what the other side looks 
like.” 
She walked around the bush and peeped through the 
leaves to see the under side of the bat. “Come around 
here,” she cried. “Aren’t those two little bats hanging 
there on the big one?” 
Uncle Jack and the children walked around the bush 
where they could see, too. “You are right, Marylee,” 
Uncle Jack said. “Those are baby bats. The mother bat 
carries them like that most of the time.” 
“Don’t they fall off when she flies?” asked Bess. 
“No,” he answered. “They hang to her fur with their 
feet.” 
“They must have a lovely time riding with their mother 
when she flies about!” said Marylee. “I almost wish I 
could be a baby bat.” 
“Do you see the little tent in which she keeps the babies 
dry when it rains?” asked Uncle Jack. 
“Where? I don’t see it,” said Marylee, looking eagerly. 
“The mother has some loose skin fastened around her 
tail and to her hind legs,” explained Uncle Jack. “Can 
you see how it is folded down over her babies like a 
tent?” 
