A few nights ago Liz decided that she really did want to do some mist netting across a body of water, so we set up 2 nets across the San Saba river and 2 more nets on the river bank. We were all wearing knee-high, waterproof rubber boots, but the river was swollen from a recent rain and despite my efforts water poured into my boots, leaving my feet soaked. The poles we have to raise for the triple high mist nets are 30 feet tall metal tubes that wiggle back and forth due to their height and slender build. To secure them, I have to pound a three foot metal stake into the ground with a three foot metal "pounder" that weighs about 15 pounds and then raise the thirty foot pole two feet and place it over the stake. This is difficult enough on dry land; imagine doing it in a river of swiftly flowing water. The bottom of the river was so rocky that it was impossible to pound the stake in more than a few inches, so we piled rocks around the base of the pole to provide support.
The sun was sinking by the time all the nets were raised, but enough light remained to illuminate the ominous thunder clouds rolling towards us. Nonetheless, Liz decided to press on, hoping that the storm would miraculously miss us. As the sun faded further, it was necessary to turn on the head lamps for light. Unfortunately, being on a river means that there are a plethora of insects and when I turned my light on, they swarmed me. I have never in my life encountered so many bugs. I literally could not breathe because I would choke on them. They flew up my nose, into my ears, into my hair, down my shirt, into my eyes, and crawled up my pants. It was the most horrifying and disgusting thing I have experienced, but I forced myself to maintain my composure and continue on with the research.
The nets were set up in very strategic positions and we immediately began to catch multiple bats. At one point I was extracting a bat from the net strung across the river, when I was overcome with bugs and fell into a fit of coughing that lasted about 5 minutes. Liz had to come over and help me finish…for some reason the bugs seemed to enjoy feasting on me more than her.
Around 11pm the storm seemed as though it was about to hit in earnest, so we frantically began taking the nets down in the pitch dark. Lightening lit up the sky and thunder boomed, not in the distance, but right over head. It was impossible to seem the bottom of the murky river water in the dark and I was constantly slipping on rocks and countless times I almost fell into the river. I don’t know exactly how we managed, but we did get all of the nets down and drove back to the house before the rain came. In the end it was nice because we finished very very early (we usually work until 6:30-7am) and I was able to get a lot of sleep.
This weekend we are going to a few caves to census the bats as they emerge. I may not be able to write for a while, but I am hoping to update the roaming on my phone, so perhaps I will be able to make a few phone calls! Lots and lots of love
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Monday, May 25, 2009
The Patrick Conroy Special Section
The other evening Liz decided that we should take the thermal imaging camera to the ocean and set it up on the shore to look for bats there. After setting up all the equipment, we got distracted and began building sand castles. As we were fooling around, storm clouds began to roll in and the wind picked up. The tide was beginning to flow in, but being distracted we were oblivious until a 20 foot high wave crashed on us.
We fled to the safety of higher ground and in the panic forgot the thermal imaging camera. Midway up the shore I remembered our forgotten equipment and raced back to save it before the next wave swept hundreds of thousands of dollars of equipment away. Liz, Kristen, and Dan were screaming at me to let it go, but I would not abandon the precious gear. Ignoring their pleas, I flung myself upon the camera and braced myself as the next torrent of water fell from the sky ripping my body from the ground. Miraculously, I was able to maintain my death grip on the camera and scrambled back to shore before the next wave hit.
Liz and Dr. Kunz (the head of the project) were so proud and indebted to me that they wanted to offer me a reward. I did my best to protest, but I had after all saved equipment that the lab had put hundreds of hours of labor into and was finally forced to accept their offer. To show me his great appreciation Dr. Kunz wrote me a check for $20 and promised never to forget my act of courage and bravery…The End.
We fled to the safety of higher ground and in the panic forgot the thermal imaging camera. Midway up the shore I remembered our forgotten equipment and raced back to save it before the next wave swept hundreds of thousands of dollars of equipment away. Liz, Kristen, and Dan were screaming at me to let it go, but I would not abandon the precious gear. Ignoring their pleas, I flung myself upon the camera and braced myself as the next torrent of water fell from the sky ripping my body from the ground. Miraculously, I was able to maintain my death grip on the camera and scrambled back to shore before the next wave hit.
Liz and Dr. Kunz (the head of the project) were so proud and indebted to me that they wanted to offer me a reward. I did my best to protest, but I had after all saved equipment that the lab had put hundreds of hours of labor into and was finally forced to accept their offer. To show me his great appreciation Dr. Kunz wrote me a check for $20 and promised never to forget my act of courage and bravery…The End.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
The Scientific Side of Things
Ok, so here is some more information about processing the bats, because I am sure you are curious about why I am out here in Texas! I mentioned that we band the bats, but we do not do this to all the bats we collect. The bats we are catching weigh anywhere between 10-15 grams, a few pregnant females we caught last night weighed about 17 grams. The wing band is only about 0.5 grams, but we don’t want to burden the pregnant or lactating females since they are already expending more energy than normal. Therefore, we only band males and non-reproductive females. Banding allows us to keep track of the bat in case we happen to catch again. This actually happened last night. We caught a female that Liz had banded last year. We take guano samples to analyze back in the lab for the DNA of pecan nut casebearer moths (PNC), which are the pests eating the pecans in the orchards. If we find this DNA, we know the bats are eating the PNC and providing agricultural benefits for the landowners. The wing punches allow us to take a small sample of the wing to get DNA from the bat. When we release the bat we take a record of their call with an Anabat recorder. This way we have a collection of calls and we know which species they came from. This is useful because we also have Anabat recorders set up in various orchards and they record all through the night, but we don’t know which bat is producing the calls. But, if we go back to our database of collected calls from the processing we can look at the different frequencies associated with a specific species and determine which species have been flying around in those other orchards. So that is a little bit more about what I am doing at night.
During the day, I wash bat bags that were used the previous night, repair mist-nets, check the Anabats in the other fields and replace there batteries and compact flash cards (CFC), check traps for PNC, and collect bug samples. I have also been in charge of cooking dinner quite frequently, which is an interesting task since we only have a camping stove. John actually brought over a small grill the other day, so I now have more to work with. We don’t have a laundry machine or a dryer and I do all my laundry by hand and hang it outside on a clothes line. Liz told me to use the outdoor sink in the back yard for my laundry. It seemed to work well except today I walked out to clean some bat bags back there and blood was dripping down the side of the sink and collecting into a puddle on the ground. Apparently that is where John skins all of the animals he hunts. I am trying not to think about it as I sit here wearing my “freshly” laundered clothes, but I guess I will begin doing most of my laundry in the shower…
During the day, I wash bat bags that were used the previous night, repair mist-nets, check the Anabats in the other fields and replace there batteries and compact flash cards (CFC), check traps for PNC, and collect bug samples. I have also been in charge of cooking dinner quite frequently, which is an interesting task since we only have a camping stove. John actually brought over a small grill the other day, so I now have more to work with. We don’t have a laundry machine or a dryer and I do all my laundry by hand and hang it outside on a clothes line. Liz told me to use the outdoor sink in the back yard for my laundry. It seemed to work well except today I walked out to clean some bat bags back there and blood was dripping down the side of the sink and collecting into a puddle on the ground. Apparently that is where John skins all of the animals he hunts. I am trying not to think about it as I sit here wearing my “freshly” laundered clothes, but I guess I will begin doing most of my laundry in the shower…
Night had fallen in the orchard, but the stars were shining in the sky. It was nearing 2am and we had caught no bats so the bat team decided to start taking shifts to sleep. As Dan and Liz headed off to the house for their 4 hour break, Kristen and I set off to check the mist-nets. As we were walking in the dark, I noticed a very large branch, turned around to warn Kristen and in the process proceeded to trip over the branch myself. I tumbled to the ground as my pants caught on the branch and ripped a gigantic hole in the bottom of my pants (a few expletives may or may not have escaped my mouth in the process). Kristen was practically rolling on the ground laughing and I thought I was about to pee my pants.
Once we finally made it to the nets, we were shocked to find 4 bats. As we began to lower the nets to extract the bats, 2 more flew in! We couldn’t believe it. Naturally, once everyone went to sleep we were swamped with bats that were entangled in our nets. Kristen is not up to date on her rabies vaccines so I was left to take them out all on my own. It took at least 30mins for me to free all of them. Fortunately, an hour later the two of us were able to take a short nap, but then we had to wake up and help process the bats and release them.
I don’t think I have ever explained what processing a bat entails. When we catch a bat in the net, we place them in a cloth bag and keep them for 2 hours in the hopes that they will poop. Guano is one way we can determine what the bat is eating and we can also do hormone assays to look at the levels of sex hormones. After the two hours, we collect the guano, take a measurement of the forearm, mass the bat, determine the species; sex; and reproductive status of the bat (pregnant, lactating, etc), take a hair sample, put a band on their wing for identification, and take a section of their wing for DNA samples. (I will write more about this later…I just found out I have to wake up very early so I need to get to sleep).
The nets had been set up next to the bat house, so in the morning (about 6am) we watched the bats returning to the roost as we took down the nets. In the morning they tend to swoop around the bat house and fly back and forth with one another. No one is quite sure why they do this and it is something I hope to study as part of my project. I should be starting my specific research in June. We will also be radio tracking in June, which requires two cars following the bats at night in an attempt to determine where the bat is foraging. We do this all night until about noon to determine where the bats are roosting. Then we can start from the roost and follow them again. It will be exhausting work, but can’t you just picture me following a bat in a car at night?! Oh it will be great!!
Monday, May 18, 2009
Scenery and other descriptions
San Saba, Texas is about in the middle of the state and Austin is the city it is closest to. The orchard is in a riparian environment, which means it is near a river and the pecan trees grow along the riverside. The roads are windy and hilly and cow farms and orchards run along the country roads. Everything is really green and all of the wild flowers are blooming in the fields. There is a particularly beautiful aster flower known as Indian's Blanket that covers the fields in small, red flowers and when the wind blows it looks like a quilted blanket flapping up and down.
The organic orchard where I am staying is set next to a hill side and the grounds are rolling. It's very peaceful and quiet and only a few cars pass by the house each day. I am living in a small field house right next to the main house where John and Jimma live. The field house is a 1 floor, 3 room house with a kitchen and a common room and bathroom. We have sheets running across the common to make a small bedroom, so it feels not quite like a bat cave, but more like living in a giant fort! We share the house with a mouse who has decided to live under my bed. Fortunately, the two of us operate on different schedules so I have not seen too much of him.
A dirt road runs in front of the house and branches off to a few smaller dirt/gravel roads that eventually wind down to the San Saba river. The river is wide, may be about 200-300 feet across where I have seen it. I jumped in with all my clothes on and went swimming a couple days ago when it was really hot. Coqueta came with me and we had a great time playing together. Some areas are very shallow and it is possible to wade in the water, and other sections are much deeper. Apparently there are some water snakes to look out for, but so far I haven't seen any. Living out here in the country is great because it forces me to get over my fears of snakes and spiders. They are all over the place and there is nothing to do but to accept it and go about your business.
Jimma grows a beautiful garden full of zuccini, brocolli, tomatoes, lettuce, spinach, garlic, and a whole bunch of other wonderful vegetables. We have free range of the garden and have had tons of fresh vegetables with every meal. I have been cooking dinner every night and also lunch most of the time as well. I really enjoying making the meals for everyone and it has been a nice way to relax and unwind. Liz said I should put cooking on my next resume :-) I have been experimenting with a variety of stir fries and quesadillas. All we have is a camping stove and a toaster oven, so I have had to be very resourceful. Dan brought flowers to put on the dinner table and right now we are enjoying "cookiewhiches": butter pecan ice cream smashed between two homemade chocolate chip cookies (thank you mom!).
Today has been wonderful. I woke up late (3pm), repaired some nets, and went into town for food supplies. It was nice to get away from the orchard for a bit. I had a really funny run in with a native Texan in the grocery store today. I was taking my time in the deli section trying to find the perfect cheese ,when an older man joined me and started perusing the various food items. He started up small talk and I couldn't help but notice his strong Texan accent. I have a tendency to pick up accents very quickly and since arriving in Texas I have already noticed that my twang has become more pronounced. The man commented on how expensive cheese is these days and I surprised myself by responding with a very decisive "I know" in a thick Texan accent. I think I looked shocked and the man looked a bit stunned since it was pretty apparent to him that I was not a local. I found myself looking around to see where the "voice" had come from only to realize that it had been me. I was really embarassed because I think the man thought I was a rude out of towner mocking him. Oops! Hopefully my next encounter will go better.
I am actually siting in the house right now and we have mistnets setup outside. We are going to a school tomorrow to give a presentation and decided to take a quiet evening in and just mist net for a couple hours outside of the house. I just extracted a Tadarida brasiliensis (Mexican/Brazilian free-tailed bat) from one of the nets!! He is so cute and very calm. Y'all should goggle a picture of them, they have really adorable wrinkly faces and cute ears.
I think I am going to take a shower during one of our 15 minute breaks and head to bed soon! I miss you all! Zoe, Christine, and Patrick please be sure to let our friends know about this blog...I don't think everyone knows about it and I don't think I have everyone's email. Much love!! I hope all is well with everyone :-)
Love,
Lauren
The organic orchard where I am staying is set next to a hill side and the grounds are rolling. It's very peaceful and quiet and only a few cars pass by the house each day. I am living in a small field house right next to the main house where John and Jimma live. The field house is a 1 floor, 3 room house with a kitchen and a common room and bathroom. We have sheets running across the common to make a small bedroom, so it feels not quite like a bat cave, but more like living in a giant fort! We share the house with a mouse who has decided to live under my bed. Fortunately, the two of us operate on different schedules so I have not seen too much of him.
A dirt road runs in front of the house and branches off to a few smaller dirt/gravel roads that eventually wind down to the San Saba river. The river is wide, may be about 200-300 feet across where I have seen it. I jumped in with all my clothes on and went swimming a couple days ago when it was really hot. Coqueta came with me and we had a great time playing together. Some areas are very shallow and it is possible to wade in the water, and other sections are much deeper. Apparently there are some water snakes to look out for, but so far I haven't seen any. Living out here in the country is great because it forces me to get over my fears of snakes and spiders. They are all over the place and there is nothing to do but to accept it and go about your business.
Jimma grows a beautiful garden full of zuccini, brocolli, tomatoes, lettuce, spinach, garlic, and a whole bunch of other wonderful vegetables. We have free range of the garden and have had tons of fresh vegetables with every meal. I have been cooking dinner every night and also lunch most of the time as well. I really enjoying making the meals for everyone and it has been a nice way to relax and unwind. Liz said I should put cooking on my next resume :-) I have been experimenting with a variety of stir fries and quesadillas. All we have is a camping stove and a toaster oven, so I have had to be very resourceful. Dan brought flowers to put on the dinner table and right now we are enjoying "cookiewhiches": butter pecan ice cream smashed between two homemade chocolate chip cookies (thank you mom!).
Today has been wonderful. I woke up late (3pm), repaired some nets, and went into town for food supplies. It was nice to get away from the orchard for a bit. I had a really funny run in with a native Texan in the grocery store today. I was taking my time in the deli section trying to find the perfect cheese ,when an older man joined me and started perusing the various food items. He started up small talk and I couldn't help but notice his strong Texan accent. I have a tendency to pick up accents very quickly and since arriving in Texas I have already noticed that my twang has become more pronounced. The man commented on how expensive cheese is these days and I surprised myself by responding with a very decisive "I know" in a thick Texan accent. I think I looked shocked and the man looked a bit stunned since it was pretty apparent to him that I was not a local. I found myself looking around to see where the "voice" had come from only to realize that it had been me. I was really embarassed because I think the man thought I was a rude out of towner mocking him. Oops! Hopefully my next encounter will go better.
I am actually siting in the house right now and we have mistnets setup outside. We are going to a school tomorrow to give a presentation and decided to take a quiet evening in and just mist net for a couple hours outside of the house. I just extracted a Tadarida brasiliensis (Mexican/Brazilian free-tailed bat) from one of the nets!! He is so cute and very calm. Y'all should goggle a picture of them, they have really adorable wrinkly faces and cute ears.
I think I am going to take a shower during one of our 15 minute breaks and head to bed soon! I miss you all! Zoe, Christine, and Patrick please be sure to let our friends know about this blog...I don't think everyone knows about it and I don't think I have everyone's email. Much love!! I hope all is well with everyone :-)
Love,
Lauren
The past few days have been very busy and eventful. Friday evening Kristen, the other field assistant who is my age, arrived and we went to Bessent Field to mistnet. It's an organic orchard that is situated next to a horse farm! It would have been gorgeous, but we arrived late and had to set up all the nets in the dark and were not able to enjoy the scenery. We had a fairly slow night and only caught a few bats, but the exciting part came in the morning when we had to pack everything up. Throughout the night there had been heat lightening and thunder off in the distance, which is not unusual in Texas. However, in the morning storm clouds rolled in and rain began pouring down. Liz's dog, Coqueta, was running around barking while Liz, Dan, Veronica, Kristen, and I were frantically scrambling to get all of the supplies. Fortunately, we were able to safely pack everything up and get home somewhat quickly, but we were all soaked and Coqueta had decided it was a good idea to role in a large pile of horse manure so the ride home was a bit stinky.
Saturday was very fun. We used a thermal imaging camera to watch the bats imerge from the bat house! In addition, we got the night off and were able to sleep :-) The thermal imaging equipment is something the Kunz lab has been working on developing for several years and the equipment is very very expensive (probably around the value of our house) so I was terrified of breaking something. It's a really neat setup: we have the camera focused on the bat house and then a computer that shows the image and later analyzing the data to determine the number of bats that leave the roost. We are really interested in learning how many bats live in the roost to determine the composition of the colony and gain insight into the behavior in bats.
Last night was the most miserable night so far, but I also had the most beautiful experience. We mistnetted in a commerical orchard across the river. Commerical orchards till the ground and use pesticides unlike organic orchards that allow the trees to naturally grow with limited human intervention. The orchard was gorgeous and there were fewer insects due to the use of chemicals, but it was freezing. I have never been so cold in my entire life. We stayed out all night which was frustrating because bats do not enjoy cold weather so we were guaranteed not to catch anything for most of the night. We were able to catch a few bats before 11 when it was still fairly warm. The first bat we captured was a perimyotis subflavus (the tri-colored bat), which we have not caught yet this year. As is procedure, we place him in a bat bag for a couple hours in the hopes that he would poop and allow us to collect a fecal sample that will be analyzed in lab for moth DNA. After this time is up we release the bats back into the wild. When we tried to release this little guy he flew up in the air and then turned back and landed on Kristen's leg. Since she is waiting for the results of her rabies shots she can't handle the bat, so I picked him. Liz decided he was cold and asked me to try and warm him up and then release him in a few minutes later. I went to sit with him in the car and it was one of the most magical experiences I have ever had. It was so special to be holding a little bat in my hand and watch him lay calmly in my hand flattening himself out to soak up my body heat. He didn't try to bite and he even fell asleep for a few minutes as I was holding him! After this experience I am hooked, bats are so adorable!!
I will write more later tonight and describe more of the scenery and the fun stuff I have been able to do. Right now I need to collect some more insect samples, repair a couples nets, and possibly head to town for a bit. We have tonight off because we are giving a presentation at a local elementary school tomorrow morning. Yay for sleep!
Love,
Lauren
Saturday was very fun. We used a thermal imaging camera to watch the bats imerge from the bat house! In addition, we got the night off and were able to sleep :-) The thermal imaging equipment is something the Kunz lab has been working on developing for several years and the equipment is very very expensive (probably around the value of our house) so I was terrified of breaking something. It's a really neat setup: we have the camera focused on the bat house and then a computer that shows the image and later analyzing the data to determine the number of bats that leave the roost. We are really interested in learning how many bats live in the roost to determine the composition of the colony and gain insight into the behavior in bats.
Last night was the most miserable night so far, but I also had the most beautiful experience. We mistnetted in a commerical orchard across the river. Commerical orchards till the ground and use pesticides unlike organic orchards that allow the trees to naturally grow with limited human intervention. The orchard was gorgeous and there were fewer insects due to the use of chemicals, but it was freezing. I have never been so cold in my entire life. We stayed out all night which was frustrating because bats do not enjoy cold weather so we were guaranteed not to catch anything for most of the night. We were able to catch a few bats before 11 when it was still fairly warm. The first bat we captured was a perimyotis subflavus (the tri-colored bat), which we have not caught yet this year. As is procedure, we place him in a bat bag for a couple hours in the hopes that he would poop and allow us to collect a fecal sample that will be analyzed in lab for moth DNA. After this time is up we release the bats back into the wild. When we tried to release this little guy he flew up in the air and then turned back and landed on Kristen's leg. Since she is waiting for the results of her rabies shots she can't handle the bat, so I picked him. Liz decided he was cold and asked me to try and warm him up and then release him in a few minutes later. I went to sit with him in the car and it was one of the most magical experiences I have ever had. It was so special to be holding a little bat in my hand and watch him lay calmly in my hand flattening himself out to soak up my body heat. He didn't try to bite and he even fell asleep for a few minutes as I was holding him! After this experience I am hooked, bats are so adorable!!
I will write more later tonight and describe more of the scenery and the fun stuff I have been able to do. Right now I need to collect some more insect samples, repair a couples nets, and possibly head to town for a bit. We have tonight off because we are giving a presentation at a local elementary school tomorrow morning. Yay for sleep!
Love,
Lauren
Friday, May 15, 2009
Dinner with John and Jimma was really nice the other night. They are very friendly people and Jimma is a wonderful cook. We had fresh organic pecans, homemade bread, fresh spinach from the garden, and roast wild boar that John hunted. Some of the neighbors joined us and they were equally as friendly. I think I received 2 or 3 offers to stay in various homes and come swimming in water holes. Texans are extraordinarily welcoming and very social, atleast the ones I have met.
Last night was very unsuccessful, we only caught 2 bats the whole night. We ended up leaving early because Veronica (one of the researchers) slammed her finger in the car door and her finger was in pretty bad shape. On the up side, it meant I was able to get a full 6 hours of sleep today! We usually head out to the field around 7:30pm, set up the mist-nets, and then open them around 8:45pm when the sun is setting and start catching bats. Then we return to the "house" around 7 am, do a bit of work until 8am and then sleep until 2pm and start doing some more work.
Two nights ago was a very successful evening. We went to an organic orchard down the road and caught 23 bats! I got to see my first red bat! They have beautiful golden, red fur and red and black wings, but they tend to be very feisty and make an intimidating hissing noise. I have been bit once or twice, so I am very happy that I have had my rabies vaccines! It doesn't hurt too much because their teeth are very tiny, but it is a bit uncomfortable and a little startling.
We are hoping to head into town today and buy some food supplies and get away from the orchard for bit. I am going to head out and check some of the insect traps and maybe see the river!
Much love,
Lauren
Last night was very unsuccessful, we only caught 2 bats the whole night. We ended up leaving early because Veronica (one of the researchers) slammed her finger in the car door and her finger was in pretty bad shape. On the up side, it meant I was able to get a full 6 hours of sleep today! We usually head out to the field around 7:30pm, set up the mist-nets, and then open them around 8:45pm when the sun is setting and start catching bats. Then we return to the "house" around 7 am, do a bit of work until 8am and then sleep until 2pm and start doing some more work.
Two nights ago was a very successful evening. We went to an organic orchard down the road and caught 23 bats! I got to see my first red bat! They have beautiful golden, red fur and red and black wings, but they tend to be very feisty and make an intimidating hissing noise. I have been bit once or twice, so I am very happy that I have had my rabies vaccines! It doesn't hurt too much because their teeth are very tiny, but it is a bit uncomfortable and a little startling.
We are hoping to head into town today and buy some food supplies and get away from the orchard for bit. I am going to head out and check some of the insect traps and maybe see the river!
Much love,
Lauren
The Patrick Conroy Special Section:
We were setting up the triple high mist-nets when all of the sudden we see a shadow in the darkness. We point our head lamps in the direction of the disturbance and watch in awe as Jack Bauer comes striding out of the forest. Bats start flying out of no where, but Jack has the situation under control and plucks them out of the air and places them into the bat bags with ease.
The my nana shows up and starts arguing with Jack Bauer; accusing him of improper methodology. A huge fight breaks out, shots are fired, and Jack is chasing me through the forest and I am dodging bats and bugs trying to run away...
We were setting up the triple high mist-nets when all of the sudden we see a shadow in the darkness. We point our head lamps in the direction of the disturbance and watch in awe as Jack Bauer comes striding out of the forest. Bats start flying out of no where, but Jack has the situation under control and plucks them out of the air and places them into the bat bags with ease.
The my nana shows up and starts arguing with Jack Bauer; accusing him of improper methodology. A huge fight breaks out, shots are fired, and Jack is chasing me through the forest and I am dodging bats and bugs trying to run away...
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Hi everyone,
So I have been in Texas one day and I have learned so much already. I apologize if I have to cut the post short, things are very fast paced here. Liz (the graduate student) picked me up from the airport and we made some stops at Target and and Petsmart. I found that pretty funny. I met the two other assistants who are here currently, Dan and Veronica. Dan has been here for a month and will stay for one more. Veronica arrived with me yesterday and is only staying the week.
We immediately headed out to the field last night and began research! It was exhausting, but very rewarding. We stayed close to the field house and raised two triple high mist-nets in the organic orchard in the hopes of catching some bats. The night was very windy early on so we didn't catch any bats until later in the night. The first bat was a Myotis velifer...a very feisty one too. It was a pregnant female and she was not at all happy about being stuck in a net. Throughout the night we caught 5 more and I released two, took wing samples from a couple, released a few, chased some with a bat recorded to record bat calls, fed a couple, collected some nice guano samples, and learned how to identify a few different species. In the end I had seen an evening bat, a cave myotis, and a brazilian free-tailed bat.
Throughout the night we checked the mist-nets every 15 minutes for bats. Each time we found one we put it in a small cloth "bat bag" and held onto it for 2 hours to give it time to poop. Then we collected the poop samples, which will later be analyzed by Veronica in the lab to check for moth DNA. This way we will know whether or not the bats are eating the insects and helping to reduce the pest damage on the pecan crops.
We went out around 9pm and packed up at 6:30 am, it was a very long night. Normally we would head out around 7/7:30 to set up the nets and then begin checking them around 8:45pm when the sun sets. When we get back in the morning we have a quick breakfast, take a shower and sleep to 2/3 pm and then take care of any odds and ends that need to be finished. I have been delegated the exciting task of repairing the damaged mist-nets. The bats often bite through the nets and leave gaping holes that need to be repaired.
There are a ton of insects and I am really roughing it out here. I have never had an experience like this before. It is wonderful! I will definitely be over my fear of bugs when I get home :-)
I have to head over the to John and Jimma's (the landowner's) house for dinner. Hopefully I will be able to write again soon. I am sorry for any misspelling, I am so exhausted it is hard to think straight. I have left out a lot of details because so much has happened, but let me know if you are interested in anything particular and I will write more about it :-)
Love,
Lauren
So I have been in Texas one day and I have learned so much already. I apologize if I have to cut the post short, things are very fast paced here. Liz (the graduate student) picked me up from the airport and we made some stops at Target and and Petsmart. I found that pretty funny. I met the two other assistants who are here currently, Dan and Veronica. Dan has been here for a month and will stay for one more. Veronica arrived with me yesterday and is only staying the week.
We immediately headed out to the field last night and began research! It was exhausting, but very rewarding. We stayed close to the field house and raised two triple high mist-nets in the organic orchard in the hopes of catching some bats. The night was very windy early on so we didn't catch any bats until later in the night. The first bat was a Myotis velifer...a very feisty one too. It was a pregnant female and she was not at all happy about being stuck in a net. Throughout the night we caught 5 more and I released two, took wing samples from a couple, released a few, chased some with a bat recorded to record bat calls, fed a couple, collected some nice guano samples, and learned how to identify a few different species. In the end I had seen an evening bat, a cave myotis, and a brazilian free-tailed bat.
Throughout the night we checked the mist-nets every 15 minutes for bats. Each time we found one we put it in a small cloth "bat bag" and held onto it for 2 hours to give it time to poop. Then we collected the poop samples, which will later be analyzed by Veronica in the lab to check for moth DNA. This way we will know whether or not the bats are eating the insects and helping to reduce the pest damage on the pecan crops.
We went out around 9pm and packed up at 6:30 am, it was a very long night. Normally we would head out around 7/7:30 to set up the nets and then begin checking them around 8:45pm when the sun sets. When we get back in the morning we have a quick breakfast, take a shower and sleep to 2/3 pm and then take care of any odds and ends that need to be finished. I have been delegated the exciting task of repairing the damaged mist-nets. The bats often bite through the nets and leave gaping holes that need to be repaired.
There are a ton of insects and I am really roughing it out here. I have never had an experience like this before. It is wonderful! I will definitely be over my fear of bugs when I get home :-)
I have to head over the to John and Jimma's (the landowner's) house for dinner. Hopefully I will be able to write again soon. I am sorry for any misspelling, I am so exhausted it is hard to think straight. I have left out a lot of details because so much has happened, but let me know if you are interested in anything particular and I will write more about it :-)
Love,
Lauren
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Hi everyone!
I have started my blog for my summer of bat research...I hope you are excited. I miss you all already, but I hope your summers are off to a great start. I will be leaving for San Saba, Texas on Tuesday and will head straight into the field to start catching bats :-)
Please let me know if you have any ideas for this blog. I want to use it to keep in touch with everyone and to relay all of my adventures so please post a lot! Also, be sure to read every post with a Texan accent because I plan to come back with one :-)
Well, not much to write now, but hopefully there will be much to share soon.
Love y'all,
Lauree
I have started my blog for my summer of bat research...I hope you are excited. I miss you all already, but I hope your summers are off to a great start. I will be leaving for San Saba, Texas on Tuesday and will head straight into the field to start catching bats :-)
Please let me know if you have any ideas for this blog. I want to use it to keep in touch with everyone and to relay all of my adventures so please post a lot! Also, be sure to read every post with a Texan accent because I plan to come back with one :-)
Well, not much to write now, but hopefully there will be much to share soon.
Love y'all,
Lauree
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