Bat Conservation International (BCI) is an international non-governmental organization

Non-governmental organization

A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...

 working to conserve the world’s bat

Bat

Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...

s and their habitats through conservation

Wildlife management

Wildlife management attempts to balance the needs of wildlife with the needs of people using the best available science. Wildlife management can include game keeping, wildlife conservation and pest control...

, education

Education

Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...

 and research

Research

Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...

 efforts.

BCI was founded in 1982 by prominent bat biologist Dr. Merlin Tuttle

Merlin Tuttle

Merlin Devere Tuttle, an American ecologist, was born in Honolulu, Hawaii in 1941. He co-directed the Venezuelan Research Project of the Smithsonian Institution from 1965 to 1967, performed research on population ecology at the University of Minnesota in 1972, then became curator of mammals at the...

. Since its establishment, BCI has formed lasting partnerships with the US Fish & Wildlife Service and many national and international agencies and nonprofits, and has produced publications, workshops, scholarships and research, and site-specific projects across the nation and around the world. Currently, BCI employs a staff of 30 biologists, educators, and administrators and is supported by members in 60 countries.

Mission Statement

Bat Conservation International’s mission is to conserve the world’s bats and their ecosystems in order to ensure a healthy planet.

See also

• Bats of the United States
  Bats of the United States
  Most of the many bat species found in the United States are insectivorous except for three flower eating species that migrate from Mexico.-Species:Bats belong to the biological order of Chiroptera...
  
  
• Conservation movement
  Conservation movement
  The conservation movement, also known as nature conservation, is a political, environmental and a social movement that seeks to protect natural resources including animal, fungus and plant species as well as their habitat for the future....
  
  
• List of conservation issues