I'm Ira Flato, and this is Science Friday. Today on the podcast, we look at two marvels of a

migration in Mexico. We'll hear how researchers use tiny tracking devices attached to individual

monarch butterflies to record their epic voyage south.

But first, how the dietary needs of a migrating bat influences what ends up in your

margarita glass.

Okay, let me explain.

When you think about bats, chances are you think of the ones you see at dusk flitting about to hunt

insects, right? But some species of bats like to eat

fruits or flowers, not bugs, and they play an important role as pollinators. Now, one place that

the pollinator role is crucial is in the relationship between bats and agave plants.

And that has consequences both for the ecosystems around the agave and for your liquor cabinet,

since agave is the source of drinks like tequila and miscal.

Now you get it, right?

Well, here to explain this seemingly strange connection is Dr. Kristen Lear,

director of the Agave Restoration Initiative at Bat Conservation International. Welcome to Science Friday. Hi there. Thanks for having me.

You're welcome. What kind of bats are we talking about here? So there's three species of nectar

feeding bats that we're talking about that migrate between Mexico and the U.S.

And that feed on the nectar of agave plants.

Unfortunately, one of them is endangered, the endangered Mexican long-nosed bat.

And that's why we're working to protect them.

All right.

So explain to me the connection between the bats and the agave. Yeah. So these bats,

...