Little Brown Bat

Fascinating ... and beautiful !

I remember we went on a 'bat walk' once, up an old canal bank near where I lived then. The man in charge of the walk had a bat detector that could record their sound, and we found several species.

There were lots around in those days. We used to watch them in the garden on summer evenings ... but I haven't seen one for a very long time.

Oh that's sad. I hope they come back.

So do I but I have my doubts. Things are becoming rarer.

Ironically, the city here is a barrier of protection for the bats living in Central Park.

Bathgate and Hywel. When we moved here we used to sit at dusk on our deck and watched bats feeding on thermites and mosquitos every night. They were lots of them. We were delighted to see them. My OH was going to make bat house for them but suddenly they disappeared. Do not know why, there were lots of pests for them to eat. Fascinating flying mammals.
We also had lots of swallows which we do not see any more. Maybe greener pastures someplace else.
We also had several of bats every night at our last house in Mexico hanging from the patio ceiling.
Our maid did not like them. She switched lights on to discourage them to stay. They are very messy.

I think they move on to "greener pastures."

I remember working at Summer Camp at Stony Point, Upstate New York. The bats would rule the night as birds rule the day. Then in the morning, you had to be careful putting your shoes on. There was often a bat or two sleeping in your shoes and they get all cranky when they are disturbed.

uk is a dreadful place for wildlife - plants and animals, especially Wales where I live - terrible. Things are dying out. I can think of many things I haven't seen for yeras. People are so far removed from nature it is unbelieveable. They are too wrapped up in their modern lives - gossiping on social media and things like that. The litter that's everywhere is disgusting - nobody cares for the environment.

Yes we have that here too. Once a coyote strayed into the city. He must have lost his way. But the idiot cop wanted to be a superhero and roughed it up. The coyote went into shock and died from the cop"s agressive handling.

What a super bright photo, just look at those shiny teeth.

...and a face only a mother can love lol those big ears!

Wow, what a beauty - just look at those teeth - they would make a good toothpaste advertisement! He's a lot bigger than most British species. He looks rather like one of those very little terrier type dogs.We had two baby bats fall into our hall from the loft this summer - what a waste of an animal that's getting rarer. They were much too young to survive and by the time we found the gap they had fallen from it was too late to try to reunite them with Mum.

Fortunately the Pipistrelle does still live my garden appears to live in the very tall conifers at one end of the garden and there others in the large Chestnut trees.
I mostly see them at dusk on warm summer evenings diving and weaving as they catch insects they have always inhabited the trees all the years I have lived here.

Thanks for showing us, Paul. I'm amazed at those teeth considering the softness of their diet! At dusk in the summer months we did see a few small bats scooting about the garden, but they are less common these days.

You're very welcome Sheila. Seeing these guys up close is a rare treat.

Look at those Teeth , a brilliant close up Paul ,Bats are protected here Our son lives 'Up North 'and has recently been on a Bat course touching them and learning all about them and their habitats . we use to see them flying here in the evenings but haven't seen any for ages ....

Nobody seems to know why the bat population overall is in steep decline. Sometimes a bat colony will relocate once a food source is depleted. They were once commonplace, but now seeing one is a rare treat.

It's a cute bat. People here in San Diego have been bitten by rabid bats. It's always suggested not to touch them. They are very good for the environment, though. Eating those horrible bugs at night.

Coyotes are very common here along with the California Mountain lions which was almost hunted to extinction in the early 70's. Bear are problems in some areas, also. Los Angeles seems to have much more problems with bears in their neighborhoods than here, though.

Wow, I don't understand why a bat would bite somebody. Was it a pet bat or maybe a rogue bat? Only 3 species out of the 1100 will drink a teaspoon of blood. They usually go after much easier prey - farm animals, etc.

I'm not an expert of course, but I've been on bat tours and seminars. Here is an interesting article:

https://batworld.org/myths_facts_page/

Bathgate:

Because the wild bats were rabid. A couple people were bitten last year by the same rabid bat. The County Health Department was diligently looking the one person who didn't realize it was a rabid bat (extremely scary!). This is why it's not recommended to touch bats here...especially if they look sick!

When any person is bitten by a wild animal and they can't find it...they must go through the time-consuming and extremely painful process of receiving the rabies shots.

This article may interest you. Bats test positive for rabies more than any other animal in San Diego County.

http://www.sandiegocounty.gov/hhsa/programs/phs/community_epidemiology/dc/rabies.html

Thanks for explaining. Here, you'd really have to go out of your way to actually touch a wild bat. After going on a couple bat tours I realize they would rather not bother with us at all.

"you'd really have to go out of your way to actually touch a wild bat"

I think it's the same here, also. We just have to be careful...and I think that's why people have to use caution with any sick or injured animal. People want to help animals here, a lot. :>))

Here's a really nice short article about people helping a bald eagle here in San Diego County.

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/whats-now/sd-me-bald-eagle-recovering-20160922-story.html

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/whats-now/sd-me-eagle-west-nile-virus-20161005-story.html

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/whats-now/sd-me-bald-eagle-freed-20161014-story.html

Thanks the artilcles are very interesting. I'm so glad the bald eagle was taken off the endangered species list.

You're welcome. I'm so glad, also.

I was very happy to read the eagle did not die from West Nile disease!