Who knew?

A huge colony roosts under this bridge in downtown Austin, and when they egress of a summer night to go out and hunt for food, it is a sight to behold. I have taken visitors of all ages to see spectacle and even teenagers (you know how hard they are to impress, or admit it) sat spellbound. It’s just creepy enough. For driving directions and map, go here: http://www.batcon.org/discover/congress_map_outoftowners.html .

Popular? It’s estimated that over 100,000 people come to see bats fly out every year, generating a healthy hunk of change for city of Austin.

The spectacle has all elements of a good watch – mystery, a bit of creeps, expec-TA-shun, and results that don’t disappoint. Tension builds as dusk falls and all eyes turn to bridge, waiting. Then you see one bat and crowd cheers, then another, then a million. Silently they head out into night and to think of where all those bats are heading – well, I often saw them dive-bombing my swimming pool at night.

Of course City had to do some educating when public became, um, upset about all 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats that migrate from Mexico to call bridge their home from mid-March to early November. I’d call that “wintering in Texas,” but, okay, it’s a migration.

Do we love bats? Well, we don’t like to touch them – no joke, don’t ever mess with a bat. But we must appreciate fact that those bats heading out across Austin can each eat 600 mosquitoes in an hour and won’t poison environment. They also pollinate plants. (Other favorites include many crop pests such as cutworms, cucumber beetles, and corn borer moths.) 600 mosquitoes x 1.5 million bats x 8 night hours? You do math! For a quickie on bat lore, go here: http://www.nps.gov/wica/bats.htm .

Might you get rabies? According to National Park Service, only 10 humans have contracted rabies from bats in more than 30 years. Most people who do die of rabies contract it from our much better friend, dog. In Austin-area, bat rich as it is, there have been no recorded human cases of bat-transmitted rabies.

It sort of adds to excitement of adventure, but when you’re sitting there looking up, how would you catch one? If one falls to ground, it is probably injured or sick, and your animal-lore in general will tell you to leave any wild animal alone. In this case, just get away. And if you like to grub around under bridge, assuming you could, well, haven’t you heard about guano? Ick!

WHO KNEW?

Interested in partaking of this opportunity? It could even bring you luck. To Chinese, bats are thought to bring good luck and happiness. They symbolize health, long life, prosperity, love of virtue and natural death.

If you’re looking for something different to do that’s also educational and generally not expensive, consider having a bat outing. Many of bat colonies in Texas are near some of best tourism areas – San Antonio, TX for instance, with Alamo, Fiesta Texas, Sea World, and RiverWalk, and since bats take off at dusk, you can add it to end of a day of sightseeing.

QUICKIE PRIMER Did you know a bat can hear footsteps of a walking insect?

Chances are you aren’t a bat expert, and if you take an adventure like this, you can wrap it around a really fascinating learning experience. For instance, did you know that:

·Bats are only mammals that can fly. ·One quarter of all mammal species are bats. ·Little brown bats can live over 32 years. ·A bat will eat half its weight in insects in a single night and doesn’t harm environment. They love mosquitoes, and crop pests such as cutworms, cucumber beetles, and corn borer moths. ·A bat uses a kind of natural sonar called “echolocation” to find insects which accounts for their weird faces. They send signals through their mouths or their noses, and they need those big ears to hear sonar. ·They fly out together in millions, but are able to navigate around sounds of one another.

This data is from National Park Service, and you can read more here: http://www.nps.gov/wica/bats.htm .

ECO-HELPFUL?

In addition to eating insects and not being harmful to environment, according to National Park Service, “bat droppings (guano) support entire ecosystems of unique organisms, including bacteria useful in detoxifying wastes, improving detergents and producing gasohol and antibiotics.”

RABIES

You’re far more likely to get it from a closer friend, an unvaccinated dog or cat. Chances of getting it from a bat are very small. 16 years of bat-watching at Congress Avenue Bridge have yielded no cases. In whole bat-rich area of Central Texas, no death from rabies from a bat has ever been recorded. Nationwide, only 10 people in past 30 years have gotten rabies from a bat. It’s also good to know that when a bat gets rabies, it doesn’t get aggressive, like other mammals. It just lies there and dies.

OTHER MYTHS

They love to fly into your hair! This and other myths are countered on Bat Conservation International (BCI) site: http://www.batcon.org/ . One of researchers at BCI tried to get a bat to stay in someone’s hair (wonder who volunteered?) and was unsuccessful.

PLACES FOR VIEWING IN TEXAS

Austin, Texas

One of most popular places is – you won’t believe this – Congress Avenue bridge in downtown Austin, TX. A colony of over 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats lives there from mid-march to early November, having their babies (pups) in early June. In mid-August, they’ll make their first hunting trip out with their mums.

Over 100,000 people come annually to see them fly out at dusk. For driving directions and map, go here: http://www.batcon.org/discover/congress_map_outoftowners.html .