Everyone knows those little brown mammals that can fly, are nocturnal, and sleep hanging upside down. Of course, I'm talking about bats. Many people are scared of these little creatures, most likely because of the myth that a bite will make you into a vampire. Most see them as vermin or pests.
Potosi High School's Environmental Club thinks of bats from a different perspective. We don't think of them as pests; we think of them as friends. Also instead of being scared of them, we are trying to increase their population. They are even making and selling bat houses to help increase the bat population for local people.
The current advisor of the Environmental Club at Potosi High School is Mr. Eastlick. He takes pride and does a lot for this club, but he wasn't the founder. He told me that he didn't start the club, he just took it over. He said, ''I changed it from a recycling emphasis to more of a conservation and prairie emphasis.” He wanted the club to be based around the life of the environment instead of just recycling. Mr. Eastlick told me that a student, Elizabeth White, actually started the club, and Mrs. Hutchcroft was the advisor when he first arrived. Mr. Eastlick took the club over his first year of teaching in 2017 after White graduated.
Bats are small, nocturnal creatures that sleep hanging upside down, but most people don’t know much more than that. Mr. Eastlick has a knowledge of bats all thanks to Dr. Jeff Huebschman, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Eastlick told me, “I didn’t take any bat classes, but we did some bat research on a desert ecology trip that we took in college. Then I actually had him come to Geneseo, and he came to talk to my students there while I was teaching there.” Eastlick’s interest in bats has led him to do some of his own research, also giving him a better understanding of bats. He appreciates bats, mostly because they are helpful to our ecosystems.
Bat Houses are becoming increasingly popular for people to have in their yards. These are small houses that hang at least 12 feet in the air that bats will inhabit. Most people get bat houses because bats help to get rid of mosquitos, which many people view as pests and find annoying. For this year's fundraiser, the Environmental Club will be making and selling bat houses. Mr. Easlick explained why he decided to go with bat houses: “We made bluebird houses last year, and I've thought about doing bat houses at some point. Mr. Bockenhauer actually said, ‘You should do bat houses’, so he gave me some inspiration that led me to do that this year.”
Bat houses are cool, but they aren't the only activity the Environmental Club will be doing this year. Mr. Eastlick told me, “We're going to the Maquoketa caves, so hopefully we'll see places where they might stay because bats obviously like caves.” He also said he's hoping that Jeff Huebschman will be able to come to the school at least once to talk about bats, and possibly even do a bat outing with him. The Environmental Club at Potosi High School is known for doing these kinds of activities, so this is a big part of why students join.
I asked Mr. Eastlick why the Environmental Club’s theme for this year focused on bats. He told me, ”I’m just trying to make people aware of things that are in our area, that we can help to improve their population.” He also said, “I think that a lot of times we think that we don't have any control or power over improving natural ecosystems, but if everybody did a little bit, then that goes a long way.”
He offered the prairie project he did last year as an example of something like that. He said, “If everyone had a native prairie on their property, that would improve the biodiversity of insects, flowers, and other animals that take advantage of that.” Then he talked about how it is the same thing if we all have bat houses. He also said that he will continue to do prairie-related activities this year also with the bat-related activities, but if you know Mr. Eastlick, this would be no surprise. High school student Wyatt Udelhofen has even given Mr. Eastlick the nickname “Prairie Dog” because of his love for prairies.
Bats are a big part of our local ecosystem, but also a big part of this year's Environmental Club. Hopefully, those who were scared or unappreciative of bats now have a higher understanding of what good they do. Bats are little creatures that have a big role, so we need to do what we can to help them. Even a small thing such as getting a bat house can help.