Texas family donates historic cave to protect maternity home for 4m bats
A Texas family donated a historic cave to The Nature Conservancy in 1990 to ensure the protection of a massive maternity colony of Mexican free-tailed bats. The preserve remains open to the public for education while serving as a critical nursery for millions of bats.
Why it matters
It showcases successful private-public partnerships in wildlife conservation and the protection of biodiversity.
In 1990, Richard Phillip Eckert and Virginia Eckert Garrett donated a cave in Mason County, Texas, to The Nature Conservancy in honour of their father and grandfather. The gift ensured the bats would be permanently protected. According to the Conservancy, about four million female Mexican free-tailed bats now use the Eckert James River Bat Cave Preserve each year from May to September, and many give birth to a single pup in June. The family set one condition: the land around the cave must stay open to the public for enjoyment and education, as it had been for more than 100 years.Why does a Texas cave shelter four million Mexican free-tailed batsAccording to TNC's preserve page, the cave is "one of the largest bat nurseries in the nation". The page says about four million female bats inhabit the preserve from May through September.
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