Find a winged creature and thank her.
Being leery of bats in 2017 just isn’t smooth. Depending on which region they’re inhabiting, they pollinate all your favorite fruits and drinks (mango, agave tequila); they destroy bugs by the trillions (pretty much all of them do that, so thank your local bat); and they comprise the raw material for every fantasy story extant (Dracula, Batman, et. al.).
“Hollywood loves bats and so do you. A grown man wears a tight, black costume adorned with a pointy-eared mask, a cape that looks like wings and a bat symbol stretched across the chest as he beats up criminals, and no one blinks. In fact, you pay millions to watch Batman,” writer Darryl Fears once memorably opined.
This week, the Cradle of Forestry in Transylvania County (so perfect) offers its “Winged Creatures of the Night Twilight Tour,” where naturalists lead a short forest hike in search of moths, bats, and owls. Don’t be afraid. A craft for kids is included in the price. $3-$6.
Winged Creatures of the Night Twilight Tour. Cradle of Forestry, 11250 Pisgah Hwy., Pisgah Forest. July 8, 7:30-9:30pm. 828-877-3130.
