Faunal inventories provide quantitative and qualitative data for different sites and are relevant sources of information for identifying areas of high species richness and endemism. Biological collections are important in this context for increasing the precision of species identification. The objectives of this study were to update the list of bat species of Ilha Grande by analyzing specimens in zoological collections as well as records obtained in areas where no such studies had been undertaken before; to compare five different studies conducted on Ilha Grande using mist net sampling; and to compare the results of studies on Ilha Grande with sampling results from other areas in Rio de Janeiro state. The occurrence of 36 bat species was confirmed for Ilha Grande. Five studies on Ilha Grande formerly conducted by the authors were compared with 34 fauna inventories in Rio de Janeiro state. The studies on Ilha Grande had distinct objectives and sampling techniques applied to different locations in the same area. Ilha Grande is one of the regions in Rio de Janeiro state with more bat records both in terms of abundance and number of species, as well as one of the areas of highest bat capture effort.

In comic books, the superheroes have fascinating powers and abilities that help them to deal with all kinds of challenges that arise in their daily lives. Take Superman as an example. He uses his super-hearing ability to know what is going on in the city. Curiously, some of these exceptional abilities can be found where we least expect them—in animals like bats. Bats have an ability called echolocation that helps them to perceive obstacles, food, and potential dangers in the dark. Humans can also learn the superpower of echolocation. Scientists have found that some blind people can echolocate, and that they still use the vision area of the brain to understand the environment! In other words, they can “see with their ears”! Keep reading to find out what happens in the brain to allow humans to have an echolocation superpower like bats!