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Vallisaari is known for its bats, and the island is home to as many as five protected species: northern bats, whiskered bats, Daubenton’s bats, brown long-eared bats and Nathusius’s pipistrelles. The island’s fortifications, its many old buildings, and particularly the caves near the pond, all provide bats with excellent breeding and wintering sites. Vallisaari’s lush woodlands, meadows and ponds mean that there are also plenty of flying insects here for bats to feed on. It is very important for Vallisaari’s bats that parts of the island are left dark, undisturbed and wild.