RE: [Maine-birds] Bats...or not!

I have often wished that there is a data gathering site for wildlife such as eBird, but for butterflies, moths, mammals, amphibians and so on. The data collected by citizen scientists could be used for tracking populations of these critters for range changes, increases, decreases or stable numbers and other points. Even if there is no one using the info currently, it would seem to me to be of value to have the raw data available at some point. Here in Phippsburg, I have seen an assortment of rare and notable wildlife. I did report and endanged Spotted Turtle to Trevor Persons with IF&W a few years ago. But, Gray foxes, bats, butterflies.........no one to tell for science. Seems like a loss to the scientific community to not have people making reports. Does anyone know of such a data collection site that perhaps I am unaware of? If so, I'd love the info.
Robin R Robinson
Birding, Bugging and Beasting in The Burg (Phippsburg, that is)
http://robinrobinsonmaine.com

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Subject: Re: [Maine-birds] Bats...or not!
From: ellenrc3@gmail.com
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 2015 21:11:52 -0400
CC: maine-birds@googlegroups.com; welaverty@gmail.com; rspeirs1@gmail.com; lhavsall@gmail.com
To: bootsg@gmail.com

Search "bat houses Bangor daily news" for an article published last week; search Maine Audubon for bat programs & presentations; and search Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife for their work regarding bats. There's much going on, with bats possibly gaining a little this year after disastrous declines due to white nose syndrome. 

Sent from my iPhone

On Aug 31, 2015, at 1:13 PM, Boots. <bootsg@gmail.com> wrote:

I saw one bat, just last night (8/30/2015). I was astounded! And excited. I actually yelled to no one: BAT! 

And I saw one bat on July 31 at 8:28 PM flying across the East Side Rd in Hancock

I have had a small bachelor colony living in my bedroom wall for 16 years. Until about 3 years ago. I have not seen a single bat. I used to get calls from neighbors on a regular basis to come get a bat out of their house or their wood stove. Now? Never.

I, too am horribly sad and deeply concerned about the loss of bats. Maine doesn't seem to be big on bat research. I haven't even been able to find anyone who knows where "our" bats go to hibernate.

Is anyone in Maine studying bats?

Boots.

Franklin

On Mon, Aug 31, 2015 at 12:13 PM, Lynn Havsall <lhavsall@gmail.com> wrote:

Haven't seen or heard a bat all summer in Eastbrook or Ellsworth.
Mosquitoes are so bad that you can nearly be exsanguinated in the
Hannaford parking lot in Ellsworth at night...several acres of nothing
but concrete.

I'm so sad and worried about the loss of our bats.

Lynn Havsall
Eastbrook

On 8/31/15, welaverty@gmail.com <welaverty@gmail.com> wrote:
> We have had a resident bat at our home in Cape Elizabeth for several years
> but have not seen any at our camp near Moosehead for several years
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>> On Aug 30, 2015, at 10:05 PM, rob speirs <rspeirs1@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> Hello Folks,
>>
>> Sitting on the float tonight watching the full moon rise on the eastern
>> horizon I was struck by the total absence of the familiar squeaks of bats.
>>
>>
>> We've always had bats at camp. At dusk we would see them in erratic
>> flight, in front of the porch and over the float on the waterfront.
>> Sometimes we would, to the dismay of many, find them fluttering about
>> inside our camp.
>>
>> When we were young there were so many, we could sit quietly on the float
>> with a long handled fishing net, and wait patiently for one of the many
>> bats to come close. With a quick flip of the net, by the most articulate,
>> we would capture a bat.
>>
>> They were put into a large glass jugs, with a long diagonal stick and
>> leaves. The jugs were of the kind which we used to carry water from the
>> spring, the wire handles on full jugs practically cutting off our young
>> fingers, or so it seemed. I'm confident some of you remember those
>> days.The bats were released the next day, unharmed, after camp friends
>> came to ooh and ahh over our treasures.
>>
>> Tonight, not a squeak, not a sighting.. nothing. Up until 2 years ago we
>> had a bat(s) roosting up under the roof of camp's back porch, their
>> droppings a nuisance to sweep away every morning. As much as we were
>> unhappy about the droppings, we were more unhappy about the absence of
>> bats. White nose fungus is, apparently, the culprit.
>>
>> Let's hope this is cyclical and our mosquito eating friends recover. What
>> has been your experience???
>>
>> Rob

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