Life's a Beach

[BatDude]

Life is a beach and for Esme also a ball...


Ensconced at Jekyll Island Campground.

Clearly, it is better to be there at low tide


Have a great 2017 all.

Bat Dude, Carolyn and Esme

[Rich G. and Val F.]

Please tell and show us more about the campground. Do you like the facilities? I am assuming you are there with your Scamp. Will you recommend it to others? What are their monthly rates?

I am sitting in Minnesota. The trailer is up on jacks and snow and cold is coming in the next few days. I am going to have to dream of the future via your great photos. Hope you guys are enjoying your setting.

[mary and bob]

Bruce, we just heard from others at the Jekyll campground that it is a real zoo because of the short term holiday crowd. Lot of noise and unruly kids riding bikes through everyone's campsite. Glad we are not there now, and second guessing if we really want to be in February. Unfortunately no sites available where we are in Florida, and reservation is made at Jekyll, so you'll probably see us Feb 1.

[BatDude]

Hi Bob & Mary,

Not sure what site they are on, but back here at J16 it has been quiet. A lot of folks leaving and sites re-occupied within hours so busier than last year.

The beaches were crowded, but just like most National park trails 95% do not go beyond a few hundred yards of the trail heads so most of the beaches are clear and free of people. No problems easily getting our 10,000 steps logged by our Fitbits.

We had friends (also bat biologists) come up from Clearwater Fl. for Xmas and we ate at the Driftwood Bistro 3 nights. WOW!.

Very very good and prices are phenomenally low.

Last night was very quiet and dark. No big rigs replete with 1,000 candle power ornamental lights to scare away the critters and chase away the dark.

The only issue we have had has been a few days colder than we would like. It is warming up again which is good as I am beginning a 31 day painting challenge. I need to complete at least one Plein Air painting everyday during January and post to a painting site.

When we are booted out of Jekyll on Feb 4th looks like we will head to Fort Clinch State Park Campground at Fernandina State Park in Florida for a week. Still pondering doing the Atlantic coast of Florida or west and south along the gulf to end up at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in AZ.

Probably all is TMI

Happy travels in 2017
- see you in Feb.

B, C & E

[TomandCallie]

Batdude, I don't mean to hijack this thread, but I have a quick bat question. I received a nice bat house for Christmas and went online to research best place to mount in my shady yard. From what I can tell, it seems pretty unanimous to mount in a high, sunny, warm place. Sun hitting the box as much as possible, avoid shade from trees, eaves, north facing, etc.

Now this runs pretty contrary to what I thought I knew about bats. That is...don't they live in cool, dark caves, under (cool) bridges, etc.? What gives?

[Kai in Seattle]

Esme looks so happy!

[BatDude]

Hi Tom,

Best to put bat houses high up on poles 20'+ facing an open area so they can easily take flight and reenter from the air. They need an unobstructed flight path

Bats in caves and under bridges etc. that are tightly packed generate a lot of body heat. Same in many caves, although there are some that can only roost (have young and maintain nurseries) in hot caves. These have little or no cool/cold air circulation and maintain +/- constant temps.

If where you live is cool/cold at night during the summer months then exposure to sun is good to keep them warm and their metabolism up to speed.

Bats will roost under the red "Spanish style" tile roofs that get extremely warm/hot. Although we had a small colony of free-tailed bats under one section of our roof in Belize we rarely saw the. One especially hot few days a few years back they were all hanging on the eaves trying to remain cool.

If you have ever been in a theater or large auditorium when the AC failed you will quickly experience the impact of multiple mammal bodies generating heat.

The idea is to achieve the Goldilocks situation where the temperature is just right :-).

HTH

Bat Dude

[TomandCallie]

Thanks for the insights. My yard is loaded with trees and the best I can do is to post up 6 ft. from the peak of my garage roof which is 12', giving me an elevation of 18-20 ft above ground level. The house will face the open space between two Colo. Blue Spruce on either side. Not perfect to be sure, but the best I can do under the circumstances. I guess we'll see...

[BatDude]

Hi Rich & Val...

OK here is a quick shot of our site with the new TV in the foreground.
Most of the clutter by the picnic table will go into the Flex once the rear row of seats are removed later this week at the Ford dealership. Now they are taking up valuable space and we will never, ever use them.



The poinsettia was a freebie from the campground. This is a Ga. State park so monthly rates are very reasonable. You can Google Jekyll Island Campground and see the layout of the place and the non-monthly day-rates. It is mostly wooded with oaks and pines, but now more open after Hurricane Matthew took out many. This place has a large seasonal population of folks (much older and retired) who have been coming for decades.

A fair number of younger folks as well.
Have a great 2017

Bat Dude

[BatDude]

Hi again Tom,

Sounds good and may be good. The key is it may take a few years... yes years for bats to move in if there is sufficient natural rooting area in the area.

Do not give up. It is always a good thing to help critters...
After a lifetime of working in the "trenches" of conservation biology, it is disheartening to see how quickly we are still losing populations and species at an alarming rate.

The Sixth Great Mass Extinction Is Your Fault - The Daily Beast

Enjoy the bats when they come.

Bat Dude

[TomandCallie]

Agreed - never met an animal I didn't like and respect. My thinking is that a bat house nearby might keep the little buggers from resting by my doorways during the night. I never see them, but the droppings are a dead giveaway the next morning that they visit every night. Have tried hanging the mylar strips where they rest, but no luck with that beyond a day or two. I love seeing them fly around at night eating our mosquitos.

[BatDude]

Hi again,

Ahhh...
Night roosts are temporary places bats hang to digest their early evening meals and are different forth their day roost where they spend the day.

Bat houses are day roosts and will not replace night roosting places. Night roosts are kinda like a place where we have lunch when we are at work, but after work, we head home to our "Roosts" for the night.

The ecology of day roosts and foraging habitat is often different and can often be separated by dozens of miles.

So much for Bats 101

[TomandCallie]

Thanks, Dude - very helpful. I will adjust my expectations accordingly. Any deterrents that you know of that will keep them from certain areas of the house during their night stops? I have tried the mylar strips and a rag soaked in vinegar with little success.