The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health cautions that bats are the only known animals to routinely carry rabies in our area. But, this doesn’t mean you should get too friendly with them. Bats, as nocturnal pollinators, also play an important role in our ecosystem. Luckily for us SoCal humans, our local bats eat only insects, such as moths and mosquitoes. The appropriately named vampire bat drinks the blood of other animals (though, unlike Dracula, does not commonly feed off people). Batsīram Stoker’s “Dracula” (1897) may have popularized the image of a vampire shapeshifting into a bat, but the association between bats and vampires has been around for much longer. Have you ever wondered why certain animals are associated with this spooky holiday? Here are a few of the most iconic Halloween animals and their origins.
Halloween is the season for ghosts, ghouls, goblins… and animals! As the Halloween décor takes over our neighborhoods, you’re likely to see some furry, hairy and feathered creatures among the jack-o-lanterns and skeletons.
