This week at Homestead National Historical Park, we hosted a summer program called “Bats Eat Bugs” for 14 students with ages ranging from 3rd to 5th grade. We had fun introducing the kids to the National Park Service and why it is important to protect our parks. The week was filled with different bats that have been found at Homestead NHP and the bugs that are used as the bat’s food source. I created a hands-on craft for the students to create their own bug. We also built bat houses to provide more habitat for the bats to live in once they migrate to the area. The highlight of the week was going out into the prairie for a bug walk. We caught beetles, snails, butterflies, damselflies, monarch caterpillars, grasshoppers, and katydids (just to name a few). Bats are important keystone species that control bugs populations, transport seeds, and pollinate flowers. We want the kids who attended “Bats Eat Bugs” to advocate for our bats here at Homestead and love them just as much as we do!

Watch Homestead’s Bat Study Video below to learn more!