Roman bats are to get their own rescue centre, under a new agreement between the Environment Ministry and the capital's city authorities.
The document, unveiled during an international conference in Rome on migratory species, provides for a specialized medical and rehabilitation centre for injured bats.
Speaking at the conference, Environment Minister Stefania Prestigiacomo said the centre would play a crucial role in helping understand more about the nocturnal mammals.
''This complex will also be open to interested experts to use for study and training,'' she explained.
''Rome's many protected buildings and the thousand caverns in the city's ruins mean we play host to a potentially enormous population''.
Rome's Environment Councillor Fabio De Lillo said the bat centre was another step forward in the capital's efforts to promote biodiversity.
''Rome is the largest, greenest city in Europe and a great tool for urban planning, given its ecological network,'' he said, pointing to the capital's many parks, two rivers and 20 protected nature reserves.
There are 32 bat species in Italy, 90% of which now live in some kind of human-built structure.
Bats, the only mammal able to fly, have been a protected animal in Italy since 1939. The law banning bat hunting was introduced in recognition of their crucial role in containing insect populations.
Bats are also protected by a number of European Union agreements as well as a Europe-wide accord known as Eurobats.
These agreements mainly target species of bats at specific risk of extinction but recognize that all bats are at risk as a result of environmental changes, particularly the increased use of pesticides that eventually poison bats and loss of roosting spots.
But while some local populations are threatened, bats are generally thriving, accounting for 20% of all mammal species worldwide.
Despite their bloodsucking reputation, most bats are insectivores, meaning they have to migrate or hibernate during winter.
