Bats of the Global South

%

of all classified mammal species worldwide are bats

of the 1426 known bat species are in the Global South

%

of bat species are considered to be at risk from extinction

Without bats’ pollination and seed-dispersing services, many local ecosystems could gradually collapse.

Nevertheless, bats are largely misunderstood, undervalued and understudied.

More than 2 in 3 bat species call the Global South home. This means our region is disproportionately affected by the lack of bat study & conservation. To make matters more challenging, wildlife research in the Global South is faced with distinct economic, political and cultural challenges. The outcome is we know very little about bat distribution, ecology and conservation status in the Global South.

Give me the hard facts

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) redlist currently has conservation assessments for only 1304 bat species.
Of these, 200 species are listed as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered by IUCN.
244 species remain data deficient!

What does this mean for GSB?

We have a lot of work ahead of us to develop effective bat conservation in our region, but boy are we motivated to get there! Become part of the solution by joining our network.

We want to shine a light (very gently!) on the diverse and fascinating bat species that call the Global South home. Here is a selection of some of the bats we’ve identified during our courses.

Fact sheets

Gallery