On the last day of October, it seems appropriate to post something with a bit of a “spooky” twist.
If you’re a Texas fan, you probably already know that the Mexican free-tailed bat is the official state flying mammal of Texas, but what possible connection could Bram Stoker (author of Dracula) have to do with Texas?
Read on to find out!
You can learn more about our official state flying mammals in the following videos:
And here’s one more from National Geographic. 🙂
Now…what about Bram Stoker?
The young Irish author wrote Dracula, a Gothic horror classic, in 1897. The hero of Stoker’s novel, Jonathan Harker, teams up with a rich young Texan named Quincey Morris to hunt down a bloodthirsty vampire, Count Dracula, who is stalking Harker’s wife. Morris is keen to help because he had once been in love with Dracula’s last victim, Lucy Westenra. In the closing scene, Dracula is dispatched when Mr. Morris plunges his Bowie knife into the vampire’s heart. Quincey is gravely injured in this last battle and dies of his wounds shortly afterward, but the story ends on a happier note when the Harker’s name their first son Quincey in gratitude to their brave Texan friend.
So there you have it! Apparently the bravado of Texans was legendary even in 1897. 😉
Teaching Tip:
Bat flights can be observed at dusk in many locations throughout Texas. Maybe one of them is near you? Despite their strange appearance, bats are great to have around, eating huge quantities of mosquitos each evening. (We have a small cave in our San Antonio neighborhood, and bats are a common sight on our evening walks.)
