The Boxing Day Bat

Many RFHH Facebook followers may have seen the photo that Mary Wayman snapped of the bat over the lintel at the Lindeman Teahouse on Boxing Day. He was clearly in deep torpor, which while typical of bat hibernation this time of year, it was rather unusual that not only was he separated from other bats, but that he was in such a warm and busy location. It was clear that he could not spend the rest of his hibernation in the confines of such a periodically public environment!

Big brown bats are relatively large at ½-1 oz. compared to other microbats such as the little brown bat.  Big brown bats are very valuable to the ecosystem surrounding our kennels, particularly because they consume agricultural pests including beetles and mosquitoes that can carry serious canine, equine and human viral diseases. Like all bats, they can occasionally be vectors of rabies.

Bats hibernate from late autumn to May 1, so it was vital that our little friend should not be awakened as it would most likely cause a fatal rise in heart rate and body temperature. Our brave leader Stephanie Phillips retrieved the slumbering interloper and almost paid the ultimate price of losing one of her favorite work gloves, when he held on for dear life. Fortunately, it was retrieved when the volunteer at the Ohio Wildlife Center pried him off.

Ann Wookey at Ohio Wildlife Center prepares the bats before their placement into modified wine coolers to simulate winter hiberation conditions over five months for the big brown bats. Learn more about their rescue.

The bat is now sleeping out the rest of the winter in a wine cooler with several dozen other rescued bats! No available Chateau Neuf du Pape or Dom Perignon for them, though. They hibernate in large net bags along the sides of the coolers so no room for libations. They will be released around May 1 in an appropriate location.

This was truly an opportunity to connect with the Ohio Wildlife Center, whose mission complements ours in preserving wildlife and its habitat for years to come.

Robyn Fillman, Hound & Wildlife Habitat and Welfare Fund