Megachiropterans, also known as flying foxes, do not echolocate and can see very well due to their large eyes. Microchiropterans, which echolocate very well, have eyes even though they may be very small ones. Throughout the world, bats are major predators of night-flying insects. These insects include mosquitoes and numerous crop pests. Individual mouse-eared bats, the most widely distributed bat species in North America, can catch up to 600 mosquitoes in an hour.
Most bats are more effective than other means of insect control.
Other means such as bug zappers and purple martins are ineffective compared to bats. Few mosquitoes, if any, are attracted to and killed by a bug zapper. Purple martins, another insect predator, tend to go to sleep about the time most mosquitoes are becoming active. Most bats in the United States include mosquitoes in their diets. Smaller bats, such as the mouse eared bats, consume large quantities of mosquitoes .