Mud Season in the Adirondacks: A Great Time for Movies
Newcomb’s Adirondack Interpretive Center hosts “Bat Superpowers” during their annual film fest.
Could the source of the world's deadliest viruses hold the secret to a healthier and longer life? Bats have a sinister reputation as potential sources for some of the deadliest disease outbreaks: Ebola, MERS, SARS, and most recently, SARS-CoV-2, the virus behind the COVID-19 global pandemic. And let’s not forget vampires.
Bats have had a long-standing association with deadly epidemics for centuries. However, years of scientific evidence suggest that bats may hold the key to a longer and healthier life for humans. "Bat Superpowers" is a fascinating film that delves into the subject of bats and their contributions to the safety and well-being of our ecosystem.
Bats significance to daily life in the Adirondacks.
Roughly one out of every four mammals on earth is a bat. Consider this: if your day includes soap, shampoo, cosmetics, a toothbrush and toothpaste, coffee, margarine, paper or ink, cushions, wood furniture, fuel or lubricating fluids, sisal used to make rope and twine, timber, boats or canoes, ornamental trees, life-saving medicines, air fresheners, candles, rubber, chewing gum, spices, vegetables, fruits, chocolate or even margaritas or beer, you are not only involved with bats, you are dependent upon them.
Bats play an important role in pollinating and dispersing the seeds of various valuable plants and trees, such as wild banana, avocado, date, fig, mango, eucalyptus and balsa wood, among others.
Fruit bats, in particular, are responsible for 98% of the reforestation of rainforests, which are often referred to as the lungs of our planet. Without fruit bats, we would lose entire forests without even having to cut down a single tree.
Around seventy percent of bats feed on insects and they consume a wide variety of bugs, including pests that attack the crops we rely on to sustain ourselves. Each bat is capable of eating up to 5,000 insects per night, and a lactating female can eat twice that amount.
Because bats eat crop pests, they help farmers save billions of dollars annually. By controlling the insect population, bats help keep the prices of fruits and vegetables low in the marketplace.
If that’s not enough to convince you, consider this: bats are an essential part of the Adirondack environment because a single bat eats hundreds of flying insects every day.
Bats are a keystone species that have long played essential roles in our lives. Their loss today would critically compromise the health of the Adirondacks and our planet.
Attend the screening of "Bat Superpowers" at AIC to learn more.
From caves in Thailand and Texas to labs around the globe, this film introduces the audience to the scientists who are decoding the superpowers of the bat.
Visit the Adirondack Interpretive Center (AIC) in Newcomb in the Central Adirondacks to see this film and expand your thinking about the only mammal that can fly.
For more information about the AIC’s Mud SeasAIC'slm Festival, visit the ADK Hub website.
Places to explore in and around Newcomb, NY.
Show your love for the Adirondacks.
Shop ADK Taste’s store for exclusive gifts and one-of-a-kind clothing and merchandise.
