Scientists discover unlikely hero that can help protect one of world's most critical crops: 'Minimizing the harvest losses'

Around the world, scientists and farmers are finding an unlikely hero in the fight for sustainable agriculture: bats.

Often overlooked or misunderstood, these small nocturnal mammals have shown an almost miraculous ability to protect rice crops. As Adrià López-Baucells of Spain's Biodiversity and Bioindication Research Group put it, per Earth.org, their presence helps with "minimizing the harvest losses due to insect pests" — a service that can mean the difference between a thriving field and a failed harvest.

The partnership between bats and rice farmers began taking shape in the 1990s in Spain's Ebro Delta Natural Park. At the time, pesticides were routinely sprayed from aircraft to control the rice borer moth. Concerned about the environmental impact, local farmers tried something different: They set up bat boxes across the fields.

Before long, thousands of bats had moved in, and pest numbers plummeted. What started as an experiment soon became a model for natural pest control, backed by scientific studies in 2015 and again in 2024 that confirmed bats' effectiveness in curbing destructive insects.

With global rice production climbing from 200 million tons in the early 1960s to 700 million tons today, according to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), pest control has never been more critical. Bats, capable of eating up to their body weight in insects every night, offer a powerful, eco-friendly solution. Modern conservation efforts now include "smart" bat boxes outfitted with cameras, sensors, and solar panels to track bat populations and breeding activity in real time.

The benefits have a ripple effect. Fewer pests mean healthier crops, reduced pesticide use, and savings for farmers — advantages that ultimately reach consumers. The environmental payoff is just as important: less chemical runoff into waterways, healthier ecosystems, and preserved biodiversity. In fact, studies show that bats can cut pest populations by as much as half.

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In Spain, researchers have even turned rice husks and other farm byproducts into heat-resistant bat boxes, keeping the animals safe in high temperatures while closing the loop on waste.

In Madagascar, conservationists are working with communities to integrate bat protection into farming, helping offset the environmental toll of slash-and-burn agriculture.

And in Mexico's Morelos region, researchers found that bats reduced rice crop damage by 58% — the first time their economic value has been measured in the Americas."The presence of bats in agricultural lands significantly contributes to the protection of the yield of rice fields, minimizing the harvest losses due to insect pests," said López-Baucells. "The economic value of this natural pest control is estimated at savings of €56 [US$65] per hectare in rice fields."

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