At first I thought it was a large moth...

MarkBC

MarkBC

The Weatherman
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Bend, Oregon
Looking out my kitchen window I noticed this a few minutes ago, on the screen outside, at first I thought: "Is that some huge moth or other bug?"

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On closer inspection: "Nope, not a bug -- a bat!"
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I've heard that bats in plain sight in the broad daylight may be rabid (since it's not normal behavior, I guess).
So I went outside and approached with caution. Well...I guess "caution" would have been to not approach at all...
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...but I'm not a reactionary when it comes to risk...(or anything else).
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I wonder what species this is? I don't know much about bats, but I think they're cool!
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Flying mammals! And unlike Batman, real bats actually fly, not just glide.
And yeah, I know -- rabid bats aren't cool.
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A while back I bought a "bat house" -- a wooden cabinet type thing, like a very-large birdhouse, built in such a way to be hospitable to bats -- but I haven't mounted it yet. The best place for it -- best location visible from the house -- would be on a power pole at the edge of my yard, but Pacific Power would probably tear it down if they spotted it.
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Not sure yet what I'm going to do about the bat... Maybe call some county agency and see if someone there keeps track of possibly-rapid bats and/or collects them...?
 
From what I inderstand is that even if you get within 30 feet of one of these, you will turn into a vampire.
 
From what I inderstand is that even if you get within 30 feet of one of these, you will turn into a vampire.

I'm not worried -- vampires are still pretty hot right now...though I think the trend is leveling off, being replaced by zombies.
 
Looks an awful lot like the Fruit Bats we see in our hangar though I am no expert. My guess is it will be gone soon after nightfall.
 
I just called Deschutes Co. Public Health, and they told me that they haven't tested any bats positive for rabies this year...but they only test a bat when there's been contact with a human, so that's not very conclusive about rabid bats in the area.

They won't come out and check it.
 
Looks an awful lot like the Fruit Bats we see in our hangar though I am no expert. My guess is it will be gone soon after nightfall.


Mark,just in case keep on hand some garlic,silver bullets,a stake(not a t bone)and may be a crucifix,oh and before you hit the sack tonight don't forget to make the sign of the cross.It all helps.Remember the boy scout motto,be prepared.
Frank
 
I've only had close encounters with bats twice:

I was doing a top-roped rock-climb on some rimrock SE of Bend, and I stuck my fingers in a crack (not knowing there was a bat in there) and was bitten...maybe I should say nibbled. It didn't break the skin and I ignored it. (I don't remember now how I knew it was a bat and not a rodent, but maybe we saw it fly out.)
Yeah -- looking back on that now it seems odd that neither I nor anyone else thought I should be rushed to the doctor...and there was a doctor and nurse among the climbing group.
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My previous cat (a fierce hunter) caught a bat and brought it into the living room to share her bounty with me, the inferior hunter. The bat was alive and seemed to be unhurt, but not moving much -- probably a bit traumatized by being carried around in the mouth of a large predator. I picked it up carefully and looked at it. Really neat!
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It's wings were like warm leather...
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I put it outside on the deck and kept the cat inside. A while later it was gone.
 
Look at the ad this topic caused to appear at the top of this page (on mine, at least):
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Clever ad software!
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Interesting topic as my next project to research is to put up a bat house here on our property.

With your talent I'm sure you can make one that looks like a belfry.
 
Here's a new close-up, a little sharper than the one I took before. You can see bits of cobweb clinging to its right-side limbs. Such fine fur...

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I think I'm going to use my bat-house, once I get off my ass and set it up (on a tree, if not on a Pacific Power pole), as a rehab-home for rabid bats -- it's a disease, not a moral condition!
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I got this one from the Organization for Bat Conservation. This scientifically-bat-friendly design looks simple enough that even an unskilled guy like me could reproduce it...but then there's the laziness factor, which is why I bought one.
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As a bonus you can now hang out side with less bugs bothering you! :D

Absolutely!
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I just checked and the bat is gone -- probably off gathering a breakfast of annoying flying insects!

Speaking of predators of insects/bugs: This spring and summer I've noticed more lizards around my house than ever before. Nearly every time I walk out my front door a lizard will retreat off the steps...and on the back deck, too. And lizards of various sizes, too...young ones, apparently. They all look like what I call "western fence lizard", but I'm not sure. Today as I walked around the house I saw something quick and blue and skinny...either a very fast (and small) blue snake or some kind of bright-blue skinny lizard.

Lizards taking care of ground-level pests and bats to take care of the high-flying pests.
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We have lots of lizards also. I've always called them blue bellies but same type. Another thing we see frequently is a Blue Tailed Skink. Maybe this is what you saw.

Yeah, I wasn't sure what it was called...
Maybe this one, though, the Western Skink. Apparently, the one at that first link (Eumeces fasciatus) is not found in the west.
According to the Wiki entry, the bright blue tail fades with age in both versions...isn't that the way with beauty, though.
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Been seeing more lizards and snakes this year down here, too. Mostly just garter snakes in my neighborhood. We have Mexican Freetail bats here, and I enjoy watching them in the evening snatching up insects at the little neighborhood trout pond. The neighbors have had bats in the attic for a while. Take that last comment as you like.
 
I think my bat is a "Little brown bat" -- Myotis lucifugus -- apparently the most-studied bat in North America. They're one of two most-common bats in Central Oregon, the other being the "Big Brown Bat". They do roost in/on buildings during the day and are frequently a bat that sets up colonies in attics. (not in mine, I hope!)
It looks like lot of the bat species in Oregon are of the same genus, myotis, according to ODFW page on bats in Oregon, but not the "big brown".
 
Look at the ad this topic caused to appear at the top of this page (on mine, at least):
bat-ad.jpg


Clever ad software!
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You probably did a search on Bats after reading these posts. The ads look at your cookies to see what you've been looking at so they can put an ad to get your attention. For instance, I was looking at generators one time and low and behold I got an ad on WTW for generators.... Big brother is watching and wants your wallet. Once he gets all your money, your sole is all that's left and he will make you a deal on that as well :unsure:
 
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