pedantophile warning
as much as i love el reg as a bastion of journalistic integrity, I hardly think that "medium of batshit" is the true zoological term...
Scientists say that the world's largest bat, the six-foot Pteropus vampyrus, is threatened with extinction at the hands of bat hunters across the Far East. They have called for fewer bat-hunting permits to be issued by local governments. Despite the name, P vampyrus is not a blood-drinking bat like some South American species …
The largest one on record was apparently 14foot 9inch wing span, the beast that flew from that would probably have been around 6foot tall, and it did fly.
/me thanks his childhood bat encyclopaedia for this information, wikipedia had nothing on that! Although the book was written in 1927 so there may have been a larger one found since.
Yeah, change the amount of permits. As if it made a difference. Most kills are probably illegal already anyway, if other "endangered species" situations are any indication. Changing the amount of permits would simply make the number of illegal kills that much bigger...
[revolted after reading an article on bluefin tuna and learning that the Japanese don't give a shit that they are voraciously eating that incredible fish to extinction]
Isn't it time scientists assessed the extinction potential of various species and named them accordingly?
For example, I wouldn't care if the last "Pteropus vampyrus" was roasted to death on a Malaysian BBQ. Sounds horrid to me. For all I know, it probably looks horrid too. And don't even start with the "we may be able to extract vital anti-cancer drugs from it" line... Been there, got the T shirt - no-one I know with cancer has ever been cured by one.
Much simpler to just rename it Fluffyus cutiarse, or Worthius preservius, or something of that nature. If I understand the idiom correctly, you don't actually have to use Latin or Greek names, just stick a pseudo-Latin or -Greek ending on and the job's done.
How hard can it be? Maybe the taxonomists should employ some media studies graduates.
@Goatan 13:47 : 'II believe the zoological term is "guano". Special thanks to Ace Ventura'
Actually, the product "Guano" includes both the faeces *and urine* of bats and sea-birds... so technically the article (speaking only of the faeces -end of the product) is not referring to Guano.