WILD IN THE CITY

Austin, Texas has North America's largest urban bat colony – and it's home to a bat dance like no other

- By David Lindo

I HAVE SPENT MOST OF MY life thinking bats were largely solitary creatures, apart from when they gathered in roosts in attics and, classically, church belfries. When I eventually saw fruit bats flying in vast flocks to and from their roosts in Australia, I was blown away.

Of course, I had seen images and footage before, but the sight of these huge bats winging over my head was awe-inspiring – so much so that I'd forget they were bats and find myself misnaming them as birds.

Little did I know that there's an even more impressive bat phenomenon that occurs every year around a bridge in Austin, Texas, USA – the annual roost of the Mexican free-tailed bats.

This large family within the bat tribe contains some 110 species that are found throughout the world (apart from Antarctica), typically roosting in abandoned mines or tunnels. Free-taileds are generally quite robust, and their relatively long, narrow wings help to make them among the fastest flying bats.