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Shade is the protagonist of the series. He is a runt Silverwing, and often mocked by his peers, who take pride in their size and strength. While Shade's strength may be inferior to the other bats', he is a master of sound, often creating illusions or moving materials with echoes.

While he is a well-mannered bat in general, Shade is inquisitive and carries a bit of pride. That would be his downfall, as that was the first domino to fall in the chain of events that created the setting for the book. When Chinook, the pride of the colony, was boasting of his talent and superiority, Shade had offered to let him come take a peek of the Sun. They were caught in the action, and as a result, the owls burned down Tree Haven, the Silverwings' home for as long as they could remember. Shade was almost executed for it, but his mother managed to save him from the colony's anger.

Shade

"Shade is based on a Silver-Haired Bat. I thought they were very dashing-looking creatures. I liked the fact this was a bat that lived in the same part of the world as me (eastern Canada). These are small creatures, with a wing span of a few inches. Their bodies are about the same size as mice. They’re insectivores, which means they eat only insects." - K.O.



The Silver-Haired Bat

Silver-haired bats are among the most common bats in the forests of North America . Their common name is derived from their brown-to-black hair which has a silvery tint. Their wingspan can stretch up to 25 centimeters.

silver-haired bats form colonies in tree cavities or hollows of both coniferous and deciduous trees, particularly within old growth forests characteristic of the Northern Boreal Ecoregion. They hibernate in winter usually to second forest roosting site to which they will migrate over long distances. In more northern regions they will also hibernate in caves.

The diet of the silver-haired bat consists primarily of small, soft-bodied insects such as flies, midges, leafhoppers, moths, mosquitoes, beetles, ants, crickets, and occasional spiders.

Marina, a Brightwing bat, is Shade's newfound friend. When Shade had been blown away by the storm, she met him. She is quite bigger than Shade, and doesn't fail to remind him of it. In the book Sunwing Marina becomes Shades mate.



Marina

"Marina is based on an Eastern Red Bat, a type of bat that, like Shade’s species, is common in eastern Canada. Again, I just liked the look of this kind of bat. She’s a little bigger than Shade’s species, with broader wings. In the book I call her a brightwing. Since bats don’t see colours, all they would notice is the brightness of the fur. When Shade first sees her, he mistakes her for an autumn leaf, because her wings are all folded up over her body." - K.O.



Eastern Red Bat

Eastern Red bats are tree bats found throughout North America from the Rocky Mountains to central Florida . Their thick fur can vary from brick red to a yellowish red. They are a medium size bat with a wingspan of up to 30 centimeters.

Eastern Red Bats generally roost in the foliage of deciduous or sometimes coniferous trees and, in spite of their bright red colouring, often appear to be dead leaves or hanging pine cones. They hang upside down from a single foot and twist slightly with the movement of the wind. They do not roost in hollows or caves.

Eastern Red bats also migrate south along the Atlantic seaboard though little is known about their actual winter habitat. They eat twilight-flying insects such as moths, scarab beetles, plant hoppers, flying ants, leafhoppers, ground beetles, and assassin beetles.

Chinook is Shade's rival and the biggest and strongest newborn of the colony. All the bats admire him, and he claims to have caught two tiger moths which are known by all the others in the colony to be an extraordinary achievement by such a young bat. Shade loathes him for his airs and size. His parents are Plato and Isis. In the book Sunwing they become friends after he saves Shade from a giant bug.

Frieda is an elder of the Silverwing colony. She is wise in many ways, and makes good decisions. Frieda has a silver band on her forearm. She was a large contributor to the rebellion against the owls fifteen years previous.

Ariel is Shade's mother. She had protected Shade from the wrath of the rest of the colony. She had lost her mate, Cassiel, before Shade was born.

Goth is a sly and smooth-talking cannibal bat, half responsible for the murder of several pigeons. He is a prince in his own colony, and worships Cama Zotz, the brother of Nocturna, whom the Silverwings and other bats like them believe in. Goth lived in the jungle, but had been captured by humans.

Goth

"Goth is based on a variety of spear-nosed bat called Vampyrum Spectrum. He’s a tropical bat that lives in Central and South America and south-east Asia. He has up to a three foot wingspan, so is much bigger than Shade or Marina. He is not an insectivore. He’s a carnivore. He eats mice, shrews, birds and if he can get them, bats -- so his diet also has a cannibalistic component. Vampyrum Spectrum is NOT the same thing as a Vampire bat. Vampire bats just drink the blood of living animals; the Vampyrum Spectrum devours the entire animal, and is a bigger species." - K.O.

Vampyrum Spectrum

Vampyrum Spectrum, also known as false vampire bats, are native to South & Central America and are the largest bat found in the Neotropics. Their dense woolly fur ranges from dark or chestnut brown to rust in colour and their ears and nose are very long. The Vampyrum Spectrum can have a wingspan of up to 1 meter.

False Vampire bats are generally the top of their order in the food chain, that is, without predators, and feed on birds, smaller varieties of bat, and rodents. They are called false vampires because it was once thought that they fed on blood rather than meat.

Vampyrum Spectrum are usually found in lowland, evergreen forest, occasionally in cloud or deciduous forests, fruit groves, pastures or swampy areas. They nest in groups of up to five individuals in hollow trees often near water

Throbb is another one of the cannibal bats. Unlike Goth, he is a coward and according to Goth he feeds on carcasses already killed by other cannibal bats in the jungle. He later dies in a lighting storm.