Customer Reviews

Batman: Exploring the World of Bats

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Laurence Pringle's Batman pays homage to Merlin Tuttle and his life's work with bats. In a culture wrought with myths and predisposed to fearing bats, this extraordinary wildlife photographer (and founder of Bat Conservation International) preaches a fascinating perspective on these misunderstood little mammals. The text of this book is interesting inspiring, and very educational; and readers will find themselves reconsidering their attitudes about these "gentle, intelligent, and endangered" creatures as they learn more about their often critical role our delicately balanced ecosystem. However, it is Mr. Tuttle's close-up photographs of his bats that steal the show. Whether is it the dwarf epauletted bat from Africa, or the California Leaf Bat, or any one of a Rogue's Gallery of bat faces, each photograph puts a new face on a world that readers only thought they knew.

Dr. Merlin Tuttle is a real superhero who has used his lifelong love of bats to begin to turn around their undeserved reputation as pests. He gives the rest of us a start in appreciating their value as pollinators of some our favorite foods and in controlling the mosquito population. He taught himself photography in order to potray the worlds' bats in a more positive fashion--the majority of the color close-up bat portrait photos are his. His enthusiasm about what they can do gets us all interested in exploring bats. Though he now has the help of the organization he founded, Bat Conservation International, he has often single-handedly convinced farmers, developers and even the city of Austin to preserve the bat colonies in their domains. Dr. Tuttle has proved that one person can really make a difference.