HUNTINGDON – Much like their crime-fighting cousin, researchers and wildlife experts believe bats do a lot of good when it comes to maintaining healthy ecosystems and serving as important members of our communities and natural spaces, including state parks.

With threats like habitat loss, wind energy turbines and white-nose syndrome, researchers and wildlife managers spend time and resources studying bats on park lands. This information is necessary to determine the best ways to protect and manage bats in national parks and across larger landscapes.

Questions that researchers or managers ask range from basics like where different species live and what habitats they use for shelter and food, to how many bats there are of different species and how that changes over time, to identifying ways in which we can help reduce the harmful effects of diseases and other threats to bats.

To that end, Greenwood Furnace State Park in Huntingdon will hold Bat Night from 6 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, July 19. Bat fans can join park staff and Lincoln Caverns officials for a fun evening, learning about all things related to bats.

The program will begin with a presentation at the Blacksmith Shop. Activities will include bat box building, games and a bat count. Admission is free. All ages are welcome to participate.

Bats, the only mammals that can fly, are small creatures that can be hard to find. They are often well-hidden in trees or deep inside caves and only come out at night to hunt for insects.

This makes bats difficult to study, so researchers have developed special techniques for studying and counting bats. In response to the multitude of threats facing bat populations in North America, the National Park Service collaborates with other management agencies and bat conservation organizations to develop coordinated bat population monitoring efforts.

Bat Night is one of many programs at Greenwood Furnace during the month of July. Others include:

Ranger Walks, 3 p.m. on Saturdays through July 19. Explore the park through the eyes of a park ranger. Join Ranger Louie at the beach area for a leisurely nature walk near the lake. Topics will include animals, plants and fungi.

Historical Walking Tour, 10:30 a.m., Sunday, July 13. Join park staff for a walk through the historic district. Learn about the village that dominated the area for 70 years. Meet at Blacksmith Shop.

Night Sky Watch, 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 26 and Aug. 16. Join Bill Arden, of the Central Pennsylvania Observers Club, for a telescope clinic and introductory presentation on astronomy followed by an outdoor night sky tour with an electronic telescope. If you have your own telescope or binoculars, you are encouraged to bring them.

For more information, visit www.events.dcnr.pa.gov or find Greenwood Furnace State Park on Facebook.