Bats Are Valuable Bodyguards In Cornfields

Bats can help to protect corn from pests and fungus, according to Science News. The finding has been supported by the fact that bats feed on corn earworm moths that produce larvae destroying corn crops.

A report was recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy Sciences Monday.

The finding was made when the researchers discovered that blocking out bats from cornfields made fields retain 56 percent more damaged kernels, along with 59 percent more corn earworm larvae as compared to open fields. The corn also exhibited "a higher incidence of fungal infection", due to larva-induced damage.

"The larvae feed on corn ears, causing direct damage to yield, but they also can introduce an avenue for infection of the corn ear by fungi, which produce compounds that are toxic to humans and livestock," said Josiah Maine of Southern Illinois University. "By consuming crop pests, bats have tremendous ecological impacts in crop fields."

Hence, it has been concluded that the value of bats touches more than $1 billion a year to the corn industry. They tend to provide benefits and protection to crops. They are valuable to farmers, helping them to save a lot of money and also reduce or eliminate the use of pesticides, according to Mother Earth News.

"Bats provide a service to corn farmers worth about $1 billion globally," said Maine, according to hngn.