Along the L.A. and San Gabriel Rivers, community scientists will aid the Los Angeles County Natural History Museum with counting bats to raise awareness for the animals.
The count will take place on June 13th and 14th, and scientists, aged 14 years and above, will collect bat poop.
The poop will be analyzed to inform the museum about what bats eat and what plants to recommend planting to sustain bats’ habitats, according to Miguel Ordeñana, Senior Manager of Community Science at the museum.
“The goal of this project is to, yes, provide the public with more awareness that bats are here, that they're an important member of our environment and ecosystem as pest managers eating mosquitoes and crop pests and saving us billions of dollars every single year,” he said.
He also said that the community scientists will also look for the bats under freeways, where the animals now reside due to the degradation of trees, caves, and cliffs.
There will be a second bat count by the museum in August.
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