No bats last night!

[Lije Baley]

"Disease killing millions of bats"

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by Lije Baley

"Disease killing millions of bats"

That's a troubling development over the last few years, yes, but so far it doesn't seem to have impacted our bat colony.

The following, however, is a more worrying situation. This is why the signs under the I-35 overpass at McNeill Road warn you not to touch bats that have fallen. Anyone who touched this rabid bat, found just a short distance away, would have to get preventative anti-rabies shots.

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[CptnRn]

Originally Posted by OpenD

I saw someone say on this forum recently that bats fly at sundown, but according to austinbatsbridge.com this time of year they take flight 30 minutes to an hour BEFORE sunset. So with sunset at 8:07pm the bats could take wing around 7.

All three times we saw them it was after sunset, i.e. the sun was completely below the horizon but there was still a tiny bit of light in the sky where you could see the bats flying out against it. Standing on the bridge we felt an occasional mist of what we could only assume was bat pee, since there were no clouds in the sky.

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by CptnRn

All three times we saw them it was after sunset, i.e. the sun was completely below the horizon but there was still a tiny bit of light in the sky where you could see the bats flying out against it. Standing on the bridge we felt an occasional mist of what we could only assume was bat pee, since there were no clouds in the sky.

So obviously YMMV on this, because I've photographed the bats many times before sunset, at both locations, and by sunset it was all done. But yes, twilight does seem "normal" too. That's why I think the timing of their launches is more complicated than just time of day (temperature and humidity perhaps? light level? when overcast it's earlier, I think), and that's why people who are in the bat business, like austinbatbridges.com should keep their projections up to date. The old Austin Statesman Batline was great. Sorry it's gone.

[OpenD]

Here's an update... they're currently coming out well after dark...

Congress Avenue Bridge bat colony not coming out until well after dark