Bacardi Supports Conservation of Bats

Recently, Bacardi took steps to ensure the survival of a bat colony

near its offices in Coral Gables, Florida. Since its inception, the
company has nurtured a special connection to bats, which lived in
the rafters of its first distillery. Inspired by the creatures, family
owned Bacardi has incorporated a bat into the emblem for its rum
more than 150 years ago, trading on the bats association with
family unity and good luck.
The Eumops floridanus bats in the Coral Gables colony are
exceedingly rare. They live only in southern Florida, and biologists
estimate that only 500 or so exist. Their colony near Coral Gables
was tracked down by a bat biologist at Florida International
University, who heard their calls at night and then used her
recording equipment to figure out which species was making the
calls. Once the bats had been identified, she began grassroots
conservation efforts.
At that point, Bacardi entered the picture. One of the companys
employees turned up by chance at an event to protect the bats
and brought the effort to Bacardis attention. The company saw an
opportunity to move in accordance with its Good Spirited
corporate social responsibility guidelines and acted quickly. The
next conservation event, which drew close to 200 people,
featured a full-service BACARDI rum bar as well as branded
clothing.