But we like it here!

Baturday News is a weekly blog written by Rachael, a middle school student and Save Lucy volunteer. Rachael’s interest in bats was sparked by the big brown bats that used the outside of her former home for a winter roost. Her family cheerfully hosted the wild colony for years.

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a nice week. It’s been a long one for me. Five whole days of school can be exhausting after a couple of months off! Who is ready for the next vacation???

Two big brown bats that are using Save Lucy
Two big brown bats that are using Save Lucy's release shed as a day roost.

I was trying to find something interesting to write about this week and found a post on the Save Lucy Facebook page. I’m sure some of you have already seen it, but just in case, I thought it would be nice to mention it here…

As you know, the rehabilitators at Save Lucy work very hard to help the bats recuperate from whatever illness or injury brought them here. After they have recuperated, it’s time for the bats to fly wild and free. Sometimes the bats have another idea.

[The above video is of one of the 'shed bats' taking off for the night.--Ed.]

Save Lucy released almost 30 bats a few weeks ago. Once they are released, most bats fly away happily and go on with their little batty lives. Occasionally, some of them don’t want to leave. That is exactly what happened with 2 of the bats that were recently released. These 2 bats leave every night, but every morning, they are back in the shed at Save Lucy.

The rehabilitators aren’t sure exactly why the bats keep coming back. Sadly, the little bats don’t speak English, so they can’t tell their human friends what they’re thinking. They might be waiting for a friend who still hasn’t been released. They might just like staying with the people. It is a nice free meal after all. Who doesn’t like a nice bowl of juicy, crunchy mealworms? It sure beats having to hunt for bugs on your own. Whatever their reason is, they seem quite happy to keep coming back to the shed. I think they keep coming back because it’s a cozy and safe place to sleep. What do you think?

 

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