brown bear

atsA bat bites through the victim’s skin with its razor-sharp teethunder the cover of darkness and starts to lick the flowing blood.The vampire’s saliva prevents blood from coagulating. Luckily,those stories take place in distant South America and the victimsare usually other animals than humans.The bats hunting in silent flight in the summer nights of Estonianeed not be feared – they are foraging for insects. Some speciesare active in natural habitats, some can often be encounteredalso in gardens and parks, some prefer to forage for night insectscircling around outdoor lights.Seven of the twelve bat species living in Estonia overwinterhere. In addition to caves, they also use cellars for that purpose,where possible. During their six-month hibernation, bats loseabout a third of their autumn weight. Any kind of disturbancemeans extra energy loss to them and is thus highly dangerous tothe animals. Unexpected encounters on summer days may takeplace in some attic where bats roost during the day. All of ourbats are listed as protected species.Bats can carry several diseases, the best-known of these beingrabies. Due to the danger of infection, it is never a good idea totake a bat in your hands because it can easily bite through theskin despite the small size of its teeth. One who still does getbitten should definitely see a doctor.northern batEstonian Museum of Natural History•Dangerous Nature: Myths & Realityanimals 14