Bats of Austin

This article is mostly about —

• Why Mexican free-tailed bats migrate to Austin every spring

• How many insects are consumed by Mexican free-tailed bats in Texas every year

• Why Austin houses the largest urban bat colony in America

• The Mexican free-tailed bats that live underneath the Ann W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge

What is the main idea of paragraph 3?

• Expansion joints under the bridge in Austin make good home for bats.

• Engineers redesigned the Ann W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge in 1980.

• Expansion joints help keep bridges from cracking.

• The Ann W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge is located in Austin, Texas.

Mexican free-tailed bats choose to live near water because —

• Water cools the temperature of the air where they live

• They enjoy swimming and bathing in warm water

• Water attracts the kinds of insects they like to eat

• They need a lot of water to survive

Why are the bats important to the city of Austin?

• Bats are entertaining and provide good reason to hold festivals.

• Bats eat large numbers of insects and being business into the city.

• Bats migrate to Austin to have their babies.

• Bats have made the Ann W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge and other bridges famous.

Which sentence from paragraph 5 best shows the main idea of the paragraph?

• Bat conservations listened to the community members’ of the concern and stepped in.

• They educated the people of Austin about Mexican free-tailed bats.

• They explained that bats are gentle and sophisticated animals that can eat up to 30,000 insects, including mosquitoes, each night.

• Once people understood, they began to appreciate the bats.

What are paragraphs 6 and 7 mostly about?

• Different species of bats in the world

• Why bats are good for people

• How bats first came to Austin, Texas

• Interesting facts about a type of bat