getting to grips with a bat detector.
By Galena
@Galena (9110)
July 20, 2010 6:37am CST
if anyone out there has any useful hints or tips to get the most out of it, then it would be good.
I have the Magenta bat4, which is a heterodyne detector.
I'm having a fair bit of fun with it. yesterday evening we were driving through some woods quite slowly with the windows down, and heard several bats, but as they weren't against the sky we didn't actually spot them.
and another evening there were several bats we heard, just before them becoming visible, so we managed to be looking the right way when they came across the skyline.
and it's great fun with my pet rats too. a lot of rats social communication is out of human hearing range, and I've been using the bat detector to listen in on them a lot, which is lovely.
anyone else a bit batty?
3 responses
@oldchem1 (8132)
•
20 Jul 10
Ugh
My skin is now creeping!!
The one creature that I fear most and dislike intensely is the BAT
I had a bad experience when I was at college when one accidentally flew into a friends dorm and ever since I have been irrationally afraid of them - they are my one phobia!!
We do have a lot of bats that fly around my home, I try to ignore them and pretend that they are not there!!
My only tip would be to bur anything to do with the things - so not really very helpful I'm afraid!!!!
@Galena (9110)
•
20 Jul 10
we've had them fly into the house anymore.
but we always found it a rather enchanting experience. I've always loved bats, and when you open the windows for them, they'll usually find their own way out again pretty quickly
one of the bats that got in needed rescuing. he was an underweight young male pippistrelle who didn't have the energy to fly, so he needed feeding up until he reached the right weight and then we re-released him.
I can understand them being spooky to some people when they're in flight, but when you see them close up they are absolutely beautiful. they have very cute little furry faces, and are much smaller than people expect.
They really do creep me out, I think it was seeing one get in a girls hair that did it!!@Galena (9110)
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20 Jul 10
Wow. how on Earth did that actually happen? it's one of those things that is an old wives tale, and genuinely the first time I've heard of it in real life. I've even heard of some bat workers who will show people who are anxious about this happening that bats struggle to grip human hair at all, as it's too smooth. so it must have been rather a freak event for that to even be possible. was this girl Amy Winehouse?
@ElicBxn (63235)
• United States
20 Jul 10
it really was, they started out on the shady end of the bridge - obviously on the side away from the setting sun and as each section emptied the next joined it - at one point it seemed like a cloud of bats coming out, and some swished by our heads, awesome
@Galena (9110)
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20 Jul 10
I've heard about that colony. that must be amazing to see.
free tails are just a little bigger than the largest british species of bat, so they're quite a good size too. especially compared to our pippistrelles, which are the most common uk species, and rather tiny
1 person likes this
@Bionicman (3958)
• Czech Republic
26 Jul 10
I have about 30 bats living right under my rooftop and I see them flying every night and early in the morning. We didn't want to get rid of them because they are harmless and in last 3 years didn't do any damage.
@Galena (9110)
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26 Jul 10
it's great to hear roost owners with such a positive outlook.
and you're absolutely right, they won't be damaging the property.
they use an existing gap, they don't chew or gnaw or make holes. they do poo, but it's rare for that poo to be smelly or cause damage.
and for all the good they do in keeping the insect population down in the evenings, they're good to have around.
if you do at any point need help with your bats, say if your roof space needed work done on it unexpectedly, then contact the local bat group, and they'll help with any complications between maintaining the roost and preventing the property deteriorating. there's a lot of ways things can be done around them, but only with guidance.
aren't they wonderful to watch in the evenings.
