What plant cannot exist without a bat?
By Chelsie Vandaveer
October 18, 2001
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The maguey or blue agave (Agave tequilana azul Weber) [ah gah' va ta key' la na ah' zul] is a succulent native to the high pine-oak forests and thorn scrubs of Texas, Arizona, and Mexico. This relative of the lily is a hardy thing, tolerant of the heat of day and the cold of night. Archaeological evidence shows that this agave has been cultivated for at least 9,000 years, apparently one of the first plants useful to early man.
The maguey is the source of sap for the fermentation of pulque and the distillation of mezcal and tequila. The maguey must grow 8 to 12 years before it can be harvested. This makes the mature plants valuable and prone to maguey rustlers. Magueros (farmers who grow the agave) must hire guards to prevent the theft of their crop. But rustlers are not the only threat.
The beautiful blue agave has a lifespan of only 10 to 14 years; it sends up a huge inflorescence, 15 feet or more, flowers and then dies. It grows best at elevations over 4,500 feet (1,500 meters), a habitat it shares with the Mexican Long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris nivalis). But the bat and the agave have more in common than habitat. They have co-evolved; each dependent upon the other for survival.
The Mexican Long-nosed bat has small ears and a triangular noseleaf (a projection of skin above the nostrils). This combination of facial features suggests that the bat depends more on its sense of smell than on echolocation. The Long-nosed bat feeds on nectar and pollen, the fragrance of night-blooming flowers serve as its guide. In return, the bat pollinates the flowers carrying the pollen from one plant to the next.
But something is happening to the Mexican Long-nosed bat. It is declining in numbers. Where there were once thousands of bats, few if any remain. The blue agaves are losing their pollinators. Without the bat, seed production is one three-thousandth of the normal amount. Magueros can hand-pollinate their plants, but the wild plants are declining and with them the bees, hummingbirds, orioles, and all the other animals dependent on the blue agave.
Suzanne Murphy has posted a photograph of a blue agave field. To view the photograph, click on the link:
http://www.ddbstock.com/agave.html
Bat Conservation International is concerned with the survival of fragile ecosystems. To learn more about the importance of bats, click on the link:
http://www.batcon.org/
Bat Conservation International, "The continued loss of Mexican free-tailed (Tadarida brasiliensis) and long-nosed (Leptonycteris sp.) bats, species that rank among our continent’s most ecologically and economically valuable, could seriously harm desert ecosystems and human agriculture." To learn more about the importance of these bats, click on the link:
http://www.batcon.org/home/index.asp?idPage=52&idSubPage=24
killerPlants Tendrils: ~~1~~2~~3~~4~~5~~
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