by Lovely A. Carillo
They leave their homes between 6 to 9 in the evening everyday, and come back in groups between 2 to 5 in the morning. Some enter their abode quietly, while the others do so noisily, seemingly drunk from their Circadian Flight.
No, we’re not talking about teenagers here nor young adults, although they may almost exhibit the same behavioral patterns. We are talking about bats, as described by bat mama herself, Norma Monfort. Her devotion to her “babies” is evident with her gold dangling, bat-shaped earrings.
Monfort, who calls her bats “angels of the night”, owns the almost 15-hectare lot area which is the location of the now popular Bat Cave in Babak, Island Garden City of Samal in Davao province. She is the president of the Monfort Bat Cave and Conservation Foundation Inc. Monfort has allocated one hectare for the foundation’s use.
“These caves had already been here hundreds of years ago by the time my grandfather bought the land and were even used as raid shelters during World War II,” Monfort said. There were already bats before, she added, but not this many.
You can already smell the stench of urine—or was that the smell of bats—as you walk along the upper portion of the underground Monfort Bat Cave. The smell alone is a giveaway of the presence of these little nocturnal creatures.
The Monfort Bat Cave is the country’s latest contribution to the Guinness Book of Records as the latter has recognized it as having the largest colony of Geoffroy’s Rousette fruit bats. This was made possible by the visit of the Austin, Texas-based Bat Conservation International. As of 2006, the Monfort Bat Cave already had a total population of 1.8 million bats, but there could be up to 2.5 million more bats as there are baby bats in the cave.
“There are about 70 caves in Samal and some of the bats have already transferred here since they do not feel threatened in the Monfort Bat Cave,” she said. They used to get guano (bat manure), a fertilizer with high level of phosphorus and nitrogen, which is then sold for P50 per sack. This practice has, however, been stopped to further help in conserving the environment of the bats.
A lot of visitors were with us when we visited the bat cave which has up to five openings. We were worried about being accosted by the bats but Monfort calmed our fears because she said no one is allowed inside the cave since the bats are easily disturbed.
Tourists who want to see the bats come out of the caves can witness the Circadian Flight beginning at 6 p.m. for only P20. Daytime visits, however, are priced at only P10 per person. Monfort said they are already constructing cottages within the one-hectare area for people who want to stay for the night for the Emergence Tour.
People generally feel threatened by bats, not knowing that they are harmless creatures. Conservationists said the presence of bats in Samal is proof that the area’s environment is still balanced and healthy and that it should be maintained, enhanced and protected.
“We still need to educate people about the value of bats in our environment,” Monfort said. Despite their efforts, people still kill bats as they are considered exotic food in some countries in the South Pacific.
Monfort said they need more volunteers who will act as tour guides for the visitors. The Foundation is raising money for infrastructure as basic as decent bathrooms within the area.
“We hope that the Guinness World of Records distinction will make the world’s environmentalists stand up and take notice of the Samal Bat Cave,” she said. We need help not just from government but also from the private sector, she added.
She said bats are the most effective insect controllers as they can eat up to a thousand mosquitos per hour, with a single bat colony able to eat up to half a million pounds of insect pests in a night. Bats also play an important role in forest regeneration as they pollinate flowers (most important, durian) and disperse seeds.
At first glance, the famous Monfort Bat Cave cave looked empty with only a vast black area. But when you get closer, you will notice that the black space after all are already the bats themselves, hanging upside down and noisily chirping away in their bat language, totally unmindful of the people watching them.
