Insectivorous, Digital Collage, 2022
Bats can eat up to 1,200 mosquitoes an hour. Often, bats consume their body weight in insects every night, helping keep bug populations in check, including those which damage crops and spread deadly diseases. (1)
Although various bat species eat different kinds of food, the vast majority consume a variety of insects such as moths, beetles, leaf-hoppers, flies, and crickets. In this respect, the bat's nocturnal behavior provides certain advantages. Enormous numbers of insects fly at night, and with the exception of spiders, there are few competitors for such food. (2)
Photo Credit: Micheal Durham / Minden Pictures
(1) “Top 10 Bat Facts.” The Nature Conservancy, 12 Aug. 2019, https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-work/united-states/arizona/stories-in-arizona/top-10-bat-facts/.
(2) “Bat Facts.” Smithsonian Institution, https://www.si.edu/spotlight/bats/batfacts.