Bat-tling the Stigma: The Truth About Our Nocturnal Friends

By: Cali Martozie, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Writing Intern

If you’re anything like me, you were warned to steer clear of bats at all costs. Since I was never told why, I assumed everyone was trying to protect me from a creature that would hurt me. It didn’t help when I discovered vampires—people that could transform into bats and feast on human blood as soon as the sun set. With these preconceptions about bats, whenever people told me another scary “fact,” I automatically believed what they said to be true.

One of the biggest, and might I add scariest, things people are told to believe is that bats drink human blood.

Common Vampire Bat (Desmodus rotundus)
Photo by Bat Conservation International

While there are species of bats that drink blood, only three out of fifteen hundred species have the capacity to ‘drink’ human blood. The most common of those three bats is the Common Vampire Bat (Desmodus rotundus). They live in tropical and subtropical areas such as parts of Chile, Argentina, and Mexico. Their diet mainly consists of mammal blood, specifically livestock, and sometimes birds and larger animals. It is extremely rare that they would ever go for humans. To feed, they cut their prey using their sharp incisors and lap, not drink, the blood that comes out. Typically, their prey doesn’t even notice this is happening, as this feeding doesn’t hurt them due to their saliva containing an anticoagulant enzyme. The enzyme not only helps them feed and makes it less painful for their prey, but the enzyme in their saliva is also used in stroke medication (Bat Conservation International, 2025)(Klockzien, 2025)(National Geographic).

Then, there’s the notion that bats will fly into people’s hair and get stuck!

Little Brown Bat

The only reason a bat would actively fly near a human is that their food is flying around them, bugs. Because of their great eyesight and use of echolocation, this is rare, as it helps them avoid humans and other large objects to find what they need. Mainly, a bat will only be near someone by accident. Overall, they are not interested in interacting with humans, much less attacking them as their instincts favor them fleeing when there is a threat rather than confronting it (Klockzien, 2025).

Finally, there is the idea that all bats have rabies.

In general, less than 1% of bats have rabies, and animals such as dogs, skunks, raccoons, and foxes are more likely to have it. The main reason they are the leading cause of rabies-related deaths is due to humans not fully being aware that bats can contract rabies and their high population around the United States. It is a good idea to be mindful that bats should be avoided, especially if they are acting strangely, even if there is a low chance the bat could bite someone, have rabies, and give it to them. Being mindful and understanding bats can help lessen this risk (CDC, 2019)(Klockzien, 2025).

Misconceptions like these are what lead people to forget the importance of bats and can make it harder for people to want to support research in saving their populations. They pollinate plants in tropical areas, such as banana plants and agave, and disperse seeds. They even save billions of dollars in payments for pesticides and crop damage just through keeping the bug population in check. By being informed about the truth of our furry nocturnal friends, they can continue to live healthy lives, and research can go towards restoring their populations that are being harmed here in the United States by White Nose Syndrome, a fungus that interrupts their hibernation, leaving them to starve. In turn, they will help our ecosystems thrive while saving us from an overpopulation of bugs (Bat Conservation International, 2025)(Celley)(Klockzien, 2025)! 

If you are interested in working with bats and volunteering, keep an eye on our program calendar for bat programs or contact our Citizen Science Center to get involved!