Bats in zoos and wildlife rehabilitation face specific welfare challenges related to their nocturnal lifestyle, flight requirements, and social needs. Understanding their biology improves care.
Bat welfare in captivity addresses animals with highly specialized physiological and behavioral needs that are difficult to meet in standard zoo or rehabilitation settings. Flight is not merely a means of locomotion for bats — it is the foundation of their feeding, social interaction, and predator escape. Enclosures that prevent sustained flight deprive bats of their primary behavioral medium. Lighting management is critical for nocturnal species; lights that prevent appropriate daytime sleeping impair welfare through circadian disruption. The welfare of bat populations in White-nose syndrome rehabilitation represents an important intersection of conservation and individual welfare — treated bats must be maintained in conditions that preserve their ability to be released while meeting their welfare needs during recovery.