In quieter Mexico City, rare bats make an appearance

Researchers at a Mexico City university campus are stringing mesh nets between trees, hoping to capture evidence that a rare bat has begun visiting its favourite plants in this metropolis of 9 million.

At a Mexico City university campus, researchers are stringing mesh nets between trees, hoping to capture evidence that a rare bat has begun visiting its favourite plants in this metropolis of 9 million. The National Autonomous University's botanical gardens are filled with flowering morning glory, agave plants and cactuses that provide the bats with food; their long tongues and noses have evolved to drink nectar from the blooms. The protected Mexican long-tongued bat was first sighted this year in an even more unlikely location: a zoo at the Chapultepec park in the city's center. Under pandemic rules, the park was closed or placed under strict visitation limits for much of the past year, and that may have encouraged the bats to come and feast.