There’s gold in that dung
with Tran Dinh Thanh Lam
VNS
Dong Thap Muoi or the Plain of Reeds in the south is such a multi-faceted area that locals boast it has something for everyone.
Take the bloodthirsty mosquitoes that infect the swamps. These voracious insects are nutritious foodstuff for the armies of bats in the region, and in turn, bat dung is rich fertiliser for fruit trees and vegetable fields.
With such an abundance of fecal matter, farmers in the area long ago recognised they could earn a living from it. They discovered that by luring wild mice into palm-leaf huts, bat droppings could be harvested and sold to other farmers.
Ba Vu of Tan Hoa Tay village, one of the many so-called bat villages in Dong Thap Muoi, recalled his start in the business: "It was during the war. An abandoned hut that the guerillas built near a durian tree on Tan Phong Island became the nocturnal resting place for wild bats.
"The tree grew rapidly and gave more fruit than other trees, and the fruit was more delicious, too. People made a link between the dung and the tree’s fertility, so they picked up the droppings and used them as manure for their orchards."
Today, bat manure is widely used by farmers in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta, including Long An and Vinh Long Provinces, where yields of durian and watermelon fertilised with the dung are quite high.
The village where Ba Vu lives now has 27 bat huts, each costing VND5-6 million (US$310-$372). "The problem, however, is not just investment. You need to be able to master some technology," Vu said.
A bat hut, he said, must be large enough to cater to thousands of bats and should be built close to water so that bats can hunt mosquitoes and drink.
It should also be well-aired and protected from rain and cold. But the decisive factor that makes the hut a preferred place for bats is its ceiling of Palmyra palm leaves from which the bats hang.
Vu said bat farmers are willing to travel to the Cambodian border in An Giang Province to fetch the leaves because without them the bats flee.
The ceiling must be changed often because the bats tear the leaves to shreds. "It’s a lot of work, but it’s very profitable," he said.
Each night, a bat hut can turn out 20 kilos of manure; in summer, the breeding season for bats, daily production can rise to 40 kilos. "One bat hut can earn an owner VND2-3 million per month ($124-156)."
Years ago, bat dung (called in Vietnamese da minh sa, or illuminating sand, for its phosphorous glow), was believed to have marvelous healing properties. But alternative uses today are limited to its use as an additive in gunpowder and firecrackers.
Take the bloodthirsty mosquitoes that infect the swamps. These voracious insects are nutritious foodstuff for the armies of bats in the region, and in turn, bat dung is rich fertiliser for fruit trees and vegetable fields.
With such an abundance of fecal matter, farmers in the area long ago recognised they could earn a living from it. They discovered that by luring wild mice into palm-leaf huts, bat droppings could be harvested and sold to other farmers.
Ba Vu of Tan Hoa Tay village, one of the many so-called bat villages in Dong Thap Muoi, recalled his start in the business: "It was during the war. An abandoned hut that the guerillas built near a durian tree on Tan Phong Island became the nocturnal resting place for wild bats.
"The tree grew rapidly and gave more fruit than other trees, and the fruit was more delicious, too. People made a link between the dung and the tree’s fertility, so they picked up the droppings and used them as manure for their orchards."
Today, bat manure is widely used by farmers in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta, including Long An and Vinh Long Provinces, where yields of durian and watermelon fertilised with the dung are quite high.
The village where Ba Vu lives now has 27 bat huts, each costing VND5-6 million (US$310-$372). "The problem, however, is not just investment. You need to be able to master some technology," Vu said.
A bat hut, he said, must be large enough to cater to thousands of bats and should be built close to water so that bats can hunt mosquitoes and drink.
It should also be well-aired and protected from rain and cold. But the decisive factor that makes the hut a preferred place for bats is its ceiling of Palmyra palm leaves from which the bats hang.
Vu said bat farmers are willing to travel to the Cambodian border in An Giang Province to fetch the leaves because without them the bats flee.
The ceiling must be changed often because the bats tear the leaves to shreds. "It’s a lot of work, but it’s very profitable," he said.
Each night, a bat hut can turn out 20 kilos of manure; in summer, the breeding season for bats, daily production can rise to 40 kilos. "One bat hut can earn an owner VND2-3 million per month ($124-156)."
Years ago, bat dung (called in Vietnamese da minh sa, or illuminating sand, for its phosphorous glow), was believed to have marvelous healing properties. But alternative uses today are limited to its use as an additive in gunpowder and firecrackers.
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