Dang cute!

My sister did just have a cute little boy earlier this week. And he is dang cute. But this post is not about him. This post is about someone I think is dang cute, but others, for some strange reason, don't agree. I don't get it. Oh well.

Perched just outside one of the side doors of the visitor center was this little guy:

For those who may not know, I adore bats! For so many reasons. And now, with White-nose Syndrome claiming the lives of millions of these guys in the east and mid-west, seeing one is even more fantastic to me, because the day may come when they are all but extinct.

The last time I saw a bat alive in the park was along the nature trail. And it turned out that bat was probably stuck, and ended up dieing there in the bushes. I felt so bad that I hadn't tried to move it that day. With that in mind, I considered the goo that the maintenance staff had applied to the upper part of the eves of the visitor center to keep the swallows from nesting. It was very likely this bat had tried to land higher up but got stuck in the muck, and now couldn't move.

I put on a pair of leather gloves, and gently touched it on its wing and side. To my relief it gently dropped off the building flew around the corner. I followed it to a large dog wood bush.

I watched it try and settle in against the softly gusting wind. It finally secured itself, and seemed quite content to just sit and wait there.

It even had a leaf pulled up over its face. It's probably just how it landed, but it almost looked like it was using the leaf to protect itself from the wind.

I can't decide if this is a Big Brown Bat, or a Little Brown Myotis. I'm thinking Big Brown. But without getting a closer look at its tail, I can't know for sure. Maybe some other expert on bats can figure that one out.

Silver-Haired Bat

I was up at our historic site today doing an apple harvest program. As a part of the program, we took the group on a tour of the site, including a short interpretive trail. While on the trail, one family spotted something black hanging off a bush.

As they got closer, they noticed it was moving...breathing actually. It was a bat!

Note the silver-tipped hair and small little ears. This is a Lasionycteris noctivagans, or Silver-haired Bat. Or at least that is my best guess. I've never seen one before. Usually all I see are Little Brown and Big Brown Bats. So this was a treat.



I'm a little concerned about it for a few reasons. One is the position is it resting in. Seems a little haphazard. Another is that is was roosting out in the open. Generally these will tuck themselves up under some bark or in a hole or crevice. So I need to go back later this afternoon and see if it is still hanging around.

I can't tell you how much I love bats. They are simply amazing animals. I do a program on bats entitled: Bats: Nature's Do-Gooders. Because they really are. Do you have any idea how many insects they consume in just one night? (hudreds of tons) Or how many plants Fruit and Nectar bats polinate and help propagate? Do you like cashews, bananas, mangos, agave, figs? Bats polinate these and many other plants that we love. Bats aid in the re-growth of forests that have been clear cut or burned over.

I'll stop now. I tend to get a little carried away. But bats are amazing. And I count myself very lucky to have seen this one so up close today.