Ecologists Find 400-Year-Old Evidence of Bird-Eating Bats in Brueghel Painting

2 articles · Updated · CBC Sports · Jul 10

A Jan Brueghel the Elder painting from the 17th century appears to show a greater noctule bat gripping a songbird in its jaws, giving ecologists possible 400-year-old evidence of bat predation on birds.
The finding builds on last year's first scientific proof that Europe's largest bat can catch and eat birds mid-flight, after earlier clues emerged in 2001 from bird feathers found in bat feces.
Researchers say the detail in Air may reflect lost natural-history knowledge rather than direct observation, since the hunting behavior usually happens at night and high in the air.
Some experts remain unconvinced, arguing Brueghel's work often mixed accurate animals with fantastical or symbolic elements, making the bat scene hard to verify.
The study, published in PNAS, suggests historical paintings and manuscripts could still hold overlooked evidence about past wildlife behavior and biodiversity.