`BAT FAN'

BRANSON -- The "Caped Crusader" would be proud of Silver Dollar City.

The manager of the amusement park are working to ensure that their business, perched atop the rugged hills of Tandy County, doesn't cause more problems for the endangered gray bats in Marvel Cave, one of the park's main attractions.

Silver Dollar City caves manager Bruce Herschend said workers have installed a "Bat Fan" that will make it possible to regulate the air temperatures inside the cave. It is hoped that the action will halt the decline numbers of grey bats that hibernate in the cave.

The fan was installed in response to recommendations from Rick Clawson, research biologist for the Missouri Conservation Department.

Clawson had noted a steady decline of the hibernating population of bats at the cave, and started looking for the cause, which he feels is the changes in air flow in and out of the cave as a result of construction at cave entrances to accommodate tourists.