This noodle art is so fun it’s batty

Bats are a hot topic around Halloween.

(We love bats --- read about how they use echolocation here.)

And we love crafts that are both nature-related and fit into the season, so today we tested out a new bat craft.

It's simple, great for all ages and utilizes things you already have around the house.

You'll need:
Bowtie pasta
Markers
Black and yellow construction paper
Glue

craft supplies

First, color a variety of the noodles black, gray or brown to create little flying bats. The sides of the noodles represent the wings while the crimped part in the middle is the body.

marker coloring noodle

Color some of the noodles, especially if there are broken half noodles, green. Those will be used for grass.

Cut a partial moon from the yellow construction paper.

Glue the moon, grass and bats to the construction paper. Use a black marker to make a flight pattern for each bat.

nighttime scene with noodles

Hang up your nighttime scene as a Halloween decoration!

Then learn more about bats and how they are misunderstood here!

How bats survive the winter

Iowa has nine species of bats (you can read more about them here) and some of them hibernate while others migrate, and some migrate to hibernate. Iowa’s two most common bats, and those that you would find in Dickinson County, are the little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) and the big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus). Both Read More »

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Mammals are usually the creatures that garner oohs and aahs when people see them on hikes, in their yards or even in zoos and conservation centers. They’re usually furry and cuddly with adorable eyes. (Some are ugly though — read about them here) Iowa has 57 different common mammal species, and some are charismatic while Read More »

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Bats in Iowa: Myths, facts and why we should love them

I get odd looks when I tell people that I think bats are cute. This first summer that I worked at the Dickinson County Nature Center, we had a family bring in a little brown bat that they had found on their driveway. (If you find a bat on the ground, give us a call Read More »

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“Where is the hedgehog?” or “What is in the cage below the salamanders?” These are two questions we often get at the Dickinson County Nature Center, because what is in the cage below the salamanders in our lower level is an African pygmy hedgehog named Honey. And Honey is usually buried beneath one of her Read More »

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Teaching our children to appreciate nature

It breaks my heart. Someone intentionally ran over two young raccoons a few blocks from my house. Kids at a day care were encouraged to throw rocks at a snake and hit a bat with foam bats. I heard both of these stories within the past day, and they just give me a pit in Read More »

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