Be Specific

Remember how thrilled I was to receive Florence and Dan's gift of the bat box?  Remember how I said I couldn't wait and hoped for new residents?  In a classic case of 'be careful what you wish for,' I do, in fact, have a resident bat.  The problem is...it's in my house, not the bat box.

Last night, well after dark, Michael gave me The Look that said he needed a trip outside.  Given the uneven ground, thanks to Robert and his burrowing buddies, Michael knows I don't leave the porch at night.  With him on leash, I turned on the porch light and he headed for the juniper a few feet out.  Unnoticed by me, a bat must have been snacking on insects drawn by the light and decided that if I was going to provide such goodies, it would just move in.  It came in, again unnoticed, when I opened the screen door and held it for Michael.  It wasn't til later when we were ready to go to bed that I noticed the swooping, circling bat overhead.  It kept going way too close the the whirling ceiling fan.  I know bats have their version of radar, but what if this was a beginner?

Ordinarily, this wasn't the first time, I would turn off the inside lights, turn the porch light on, and leave the screen door open   The problem was, Ralph and Celeste are inside-only cats, and Michael can't go outside off lead.  The four-leggeds had noticed what I hoped would be a visitor and not a resident by now.  It seemed prudent to turn off the fan and the lights and go to bed.  The cats did not join me.  Their night vision is better than mine.

I'm hoping to find the tiny little guy hanging somewhere in the house today, sleeping off the night's adventure.  Bats in this area have only a four-to-five inch wing span.  Then I'll think about putting a sign on the bat box saying, "Bats welcome here."

Stay safe.  Be well.