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Server Time:
2024-05-04 06:58:53
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 pinchy
   
Location: Minneapolis
Gender: Male
 |  | Mississippi Drain and Bats
< on 9/24/2008 2:06 PM >
|  | | | I spent all day Sunday checking out each drain along a two mile shoreline of the Mississippi in Saint Paul (birds-eye view in Live Maps is great). Most of the drains were dead-ends or inaccessible but I came across one that warranted a return later in the evening.
However, we were chased out by bats. One landed on my friend's back; I was dive bombed several times. For the photo below, I was crouched on the floor and taking random shots of the darkness. I happened to catch one large bat coming toward me.
I admire anyone who can keep walking through a drain while ignoring the random flaps against the head. Also, I'm told that most rabies infections in the U.S. are caused by bat bites -- which are often painless and undetectable. We are not going to return until we get vaccinated.
Anyone else encounter bats?
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metawaffle
   
King of Puns
Location: Brisbane!
Gender: Male
Purveyor of Fine Lampshades
| |  | Re: Mississippi Drain and Bats
<Reply # 1 on 9/24/2008 2:14 PM >
| | | | Sure, especially in the drain known as "Burford's Batcave"  Having bats flap around you can be disconcerting, but not really a cause for concern in a country like Australia that doesn't have rabies.
I thought I had some incidental shots of bats in a drain somewhere, but failed to find them. I try not to blast the poor things with flash or lights on purpose 
http://www.longexposure.net |
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Freak
 
Location: Usually Alaska, now MSP.
Gender: Male
Hypocrite
| | | Re: Mississippi Drain and Bats
<Reply # 2 on 9/25/2008 12:49 PM >
| | | | I think the tiny chance of getting rabies (see stats) is outweighed by the massive number of mosquitos bats can eat nightly. Skeeters can carry way more crazy diseases, they even came up with a new one from nearby Wisconsin recently.
Generally bats in drains and caves will avoid you, they really don't want to run into you, and their sonar is pretty good. If you run around waving your arms or something then they might get confused and hit you, but they're not doing it on purpose. I had one mistake my camera for a roosting place once, but that's the only time a bat has come close to me by choice.
I wouldn't worry too much about rabies. There have been fewer than 60 cases in the US in the last 16 years or so. It's an actual problem in undeveloped nations, but around here it's just something for the news to scare you with when there's nothing else going on.
Most of those bat cases involved someone picking up a sick bat or finding one in their bedroom. Don't mess around with one that's lying on the ground or looks sick, but you shouldn't mess with any sick wild animal around here.
West Nile is far more prevalent (over 1000 cases per year in the US) and kills more people. Then there's Bird Flu, Mad Cow, Hantavirus, and all those other semi-real diseases that the Media tends to popularize and then forget 5 minutes later. Rabies just happens to be a long-time favorite because it kills healthy Americans, no one cares about a disease that just kills third world people or the sick and elderly..
In Minnesota, Skunks and domestic animals are more likely to carry Rabies than Bats: http://www.health....abies/rabiesmn.pdf
So yeah, bats are our friends. They get a bum rap from the media and have enough problems in St. Paul with the city bulldozing every cave they can find (and then blowing money on mosquito chemicals, smooth). Most explorers around here try to avoid places with lots of bats in the winter, since they can die if they're woken up during hibernation.
[last edit 9/25/2008 12:51 PM by Freak - edited 1 times]
Turn off the internet and go play outside.
http://spamusement...hp/comics/view/137 |
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dsankt
Location: live and in the fresh
| |  | | Re: Mississippi Drain and Bats
<Reply # 3 on 9/25/2008 1:23 PM >
| | | | From Burford's Batcave, can't remember who took the photos.
sleepycity.net: watch out for the third rail baby, that shit is high voltage. urbex and urban exploration photography |
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Curious_George
Location: Cambridge
Gender: Male
Straight outta New Bedlam
| | Re: Mississippi Drain and Bats
<Reply # 4 on 9/25/2008 4:35 PM >
| | | | A bat flew into my head when I explored a mine in Nevada the other day. Scared the shit out of me because I was on edge from nearly stepping on a rattlesnake.
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junkyard
Location: LaCrosse, WI
Gender: Male
Strategic Beer Command where the metal hits the meat.
| | | Re: Mississippi Drain and Bats
<Reply # 5 on 9/29/2008 2:01 PM >
| | | | That's funny. We were just out there 2 months ago. The bats will turn you into a vampire. It's a fact because my daughter said so, and she learned it from watching too much Scooby Doo. I'll take bats over snakes any day. I almost stepped on a Mojave Green in AZ that trip and you won't get time to die from Rabies. But I have had quite a few bats hit me trying to get past. It's really not a big deal unless you suck. I was also turned back by some rather large and frequent poop in a mine tunnel. It was getting thicker and all I had was my Mag to fend off the big kitty. There are other mines. Also CG a pair of snake gaiters isn't very expensive. I've been going out there for over 10 years and never seen a single snake. Last trip we saw 3. I'm thinking of getting a pair.
I drink gasoline for breakfeast and beer for dinner!
Any problem can be licked with a case of beer and a few sticks of dynamite.
Strategic Beer Command ruling the desert since 1995 http://www.strategic-beer-command.com |
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