About the bat

There’s been a great deal of focus on the importance of bats when it comes to mezcal and tequila. Organizations like the Bat Friendly Project and Bat Conservation International have done incredible work in raising the awareness of their role as the great agave pollinators which helps maintain the genetic diversity of the plants in Mexico. So, when I recently found myself at an agave farm in California, I had this kind of “duh” aha moment when Craig Reynolds mentioned that they didn’t get many seeds from their quiotes because there were so few pollinators in the area.

Obviously there are a number of pollinators like bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds in the fields, but when it comes to agave they just aren’t that effective. That’s because agave flowers open at night when they are not really buzzing around. And what flies at night? Bats.

But here’s the thing, not just any bat is an agave pollinator. That role has fallen primarily on the wings of the Long-nosed and Lesser Long-nosed bats and to some degree, the Long-tongued bat (check out these photos by Merlin Tuttle to see just how much pollen these bats get on their noses.) Most of California falls outside of their migratory path. Also outside of their migratory path? India, Australia and South Africa, countries that have their own agave projects underway.

If you look closely at their migratory path, you can begin to understand why Mexico has the greatest number and diversity of agave in the world. These bats are doing their jobs and it is why so much attention has been put on keeping them alive, healthy, and migrating.

So, what does this mean for the agave that grows outside of their migratory path? Well, a lot less genetic diversity and a greater reliance on the use of hijuelos and bulbillos in the replanting of agave. It is so obvious, yet it’s something that hasn’t really been talked about much as these projects have proliferated; much of the focus has been on the drought tolerance of agave plants.

Obviously bats are pollinators all over the world, but it is probably time this conversation becomes more widespread so we can understand which of those bats may be agave pollinators.