Microbats: the unsung heroes of the night shift

Australia's tiny microbats are the unsung heroes of the night shift. Smaller than your thumb and utterly harmless, a single microbat can eat hundreds — sometimes thousands — of moths, mosquitoes and beetles in one night, including many of the moths whose caterpillars would otherwise chew your veggies.

What they eat

Night-flying moths (so fewer caterpillars and cutworms), mosquitoes, beetles and other flying insects.

How to welcome them

• Put up a bat box — microbats roost in tree hollows, which are scarce in the suburbs.
• Keep some native trees and a water source nearby.
• As ever, no insecticides — they wipe out the insects the bats depend on.

They want nothing to do with you and are gone by dawn — but they're one of the best pest controllers you'll never see. For the full approach, see our guide to managing pests the safe way.

Image: garrytre, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.