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Sierra-Bullones, Bohol - In the movie “Bats,” the nocturnal bats mercilessly attacked human beings but it is the opposite in this hinterland town.

Reports received by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Bohol office said that some unidentified persons from Cebu literally raided and consequently harvested bats for delicacy, said Mr. Nestor Canda, officer-in-charge provincial environment and natural resources office here.

Canda said that his office is still verifying the report. He said that the alleged harvesting of bats here has no permit per information of the DENR regional office.

The harvest of this mammal is said to be a brisk delicacy business like the bird’s nest trade for expensive soup in restaurants.

Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera from the Greek word, cheir, "hand" and pteron, "wing" whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are important in eating insect pests, reducing the need for pesticides, according to Wikipedia. They also are instrumental in pollination. In the Philippines, there are more than 70 bat species out of more than a 1,000 in the world.

Bats are locally known “kwaknit” or “kabog.” They’re also fruit-eating mammals in some parts of the province. In Northern Mindanao, their favourite is lanzones.

Some fragile caves like in Mabini and Candijay and other towns in Bohol where bats dwell are being mined and extracted of their guano deposits, also, for lucrative business in fertilizer making.

This writer tried to verify with Mayor Fredo Gamalo if he is also informed of this but to no avail since his cell phone did not answer to the text and calls sent to him.

Bat conservationist Norma Monfort, owner of the bat conservation organization in Davao, particularly in Samal island where the bat conservation is being pursued, called for a boycott of the movie “Expendables 2” produced by Hollywood actor-director Sylvester Stallone. The film star casts include “Die Hard’s” Bruce Willis, “Cyborg” Jean Claude Van Damme, “True Lies” Arnold Schwarzenegger, “The Transporter” Jason Statham and Jet Li, news report bared.

The report said that producers of the “Expendables 2” were fined by authorities in Bulgaria, a country in Europe where the movie was shot, for the destruction of bat habitat in Devetashka, which is home to 15 species of bats.

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