Austin Bat Hospital Blog

Hoary Bat!

The cold weather brought me a hoary bat and a red bat.  They were icy cold, poor things, and hanging on the side of buildings.  They are both warm and happy now, and soooo beautiful!  As soon as I figure out how to use my new camera flash, I'll get some photos of them.

Teenagers!

Lots of little juvenile free-tails have been visiting the hospital.  The young born this year are now flying and doing their best to catch bugs.  They don't all do very well, so some end up with us.  Right now I have 7 of these "teenagers."  They sure are cute little things.  Unlike some of the adults that come in, these little ones are quick to accept an offer of food, gobbling up mealworms and babyfood with relish.  I really enjoy these little guys.

Evening Bat Baby

I have the sweetest little evening bat baby (Nycticeius humeralis).  He is a boy and is just now starting to eat meal worms parts.  Such a cutie!

Devil Boy

I got a poor little free-tail that has an injury to his tail. It was badly injured and split in two so that it looks like he has a forked tail! I'm going to remove some of the tissue so he only has one tip. Bone is exposed on one side, so I may have to remove a bit of bone later. Poor little devil boy. Still, he is eating well and much healthier than he was at first.

Growth on Lip

Here's a photo of an odd growth on the lip of a Mexican free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis). I'm not sure what it is, but it doesn't seem to bother the little guy. He had a bad wing injury as well, although it has healed up, he won't be a releasable bat as the wing extends out a little.

Escapee "Rhonda the Wretched"

Ah ha! At last I captured the little escapee, "Rhonda the Wretched". This Rhonda is a big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus). I have 2 Rhondas, a free-tail and a big brown bat. Big brown bats are not really big. They are only 3 or 4 inches long from their black leathery-looking nose to the tip of their tail. They have long silky chocolate-colored hair. Rhonda often disappears from her cage and goes to roost up in the loft of the little red bat barn. But she hides so well that I can't find her when evening comes and it's time for me to feed and check on all the little bats in the barn. She sneaks down at night after I leave, eats like a little pig from the trays filled with mealworms, and then flies back to her hiding place.

Well, I finally surprised her by sneaking back in after I finsihed last night . I tiptoed through the barn and found her in a tray, her butt up in the air and her head buried in the food, just stuffing her face full of worms. She gave me a loud irritation buzz to let me know how offended she was when I pulled her out of the tray and put her back in the roosting cage with some of her pals. She lives with Becky, the sweetest little bat you'd ever want to meet. Rhonda, on the other hand, is an ungrateful complainer, irritated by the slightest disturbance.