Leslie Sturges

Leslie Sturges

Bonnie bonnets in Florida

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week. Mine was fun because I have a friend visiting, so I’ve been doing a lot of sightseeing. There was a hurricane in the southeastern United States this week. The state of Florida was hit very hard. This week’s blog is dedicated to everyone affected by Hurricane Michael, not only in Florida, but also in Alabama, Georgia, North and South Carolina, and Virginia. I did a little bit of research and discovered that Florida’s largest bat is the Florida bonneted bat. I wrote about this bat a couple of years ago, but I thought it was worth refreshing everyone’s memories on this adorable bat. This bat is listed as endangered by the USFWS and is believed to be the rarest bat in the world. The Florida bonneted bat is large with a long tail membrane. It can be 6.5 inches long with a wingspan of 20 inches. Its ears join at the base. The bats’ fur is black, brown, gray, or cinnamon brown. Not much is known about this bat because it is so rare. They only live in a few counties in south Florida and only a few nursery roosts have been found. Loss of habitat is the Florida bonneted bats’ greatest threat. Habitat loss for this species comes in the form of human destruction of its roosting sites as well as natural disasters such as hurricanes. If you would like to read more about the Florida bonneted bat, you can find information here. In other batty news, there will be a bat event at Huntley Meadows Park in Alexandria, VA tonight at 7:00 PM. I am going to try to make it. Mrs. Sturges will definitely be there with some of our bat friends. If you are in the […]

Sulawesi, we’re thinking of you.

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week! Things went from bad to worse in Indonesia this week. After having both an earthquake and a tsunami last week, a total of three volcanoes erupted this week. These volcanoes are spewing ash into the sky, which makes it difficult to breathe. Once again, I would like to dedicate my blog to the people of Indonesia. I hope things improve for you all very soon. Our esteemed leader, Mrs. Sturges, suggested that I write about the Sulawesi flying fox. The Sulawesi flying fox lives on the islands of Sulawesi and Buton. Sulawesi is the island where there was the earthquake and tsunami. This adorable flying fox has yellow-orange fur and long noses that are perfect for munching on fruit and sucking up pollen. They have big eyes compared to microbats. Sulawesi flying foxes like to eat coconuts, breadfruits, and their favorite, pollen from eucalyptus blossoms. Like a lot of other megabats, Sulawesi flying foxes roost in trees. They are often found hanging in mangrove forests. These bats will sometimes share the trees that they are roosting in with black flying foxes. It works out perfectly for the bats because black flying foxes prefer lower branches and Sulawesi flying foxes like to be up high. Sadly, these bats are listed as vulnerable because of hunting. A lot of Sulawesi roosting trees are being cut down which leaves them unprotected. Sulawesi flying foxes are completely extinct in North Sulawesi because of the hunters. If you would like to read more about the Sulawesi flying fox, you can find information here. I would like to remind everyone that there is another batty event on Saturday, October 13 at 7:00 PM. This event will be at Huntley Meadows Park in Alexandria, VA. Mrs. Sturges […]

A little omnivorous in Indonesia

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week. My week had a sad start because the Nature Fest in Herndon was cancelled because of the rain. It rained pretty much all week, but I think we are supposed to have a sunny weekend. There was another earthquake in Indonesia on Friday. And then after the earthquake there was a tsunami. I would like to dedicate this week’s blog to the people of Indonesia. My thoughts are with you all while you recover from these events. I researched Indonesian bats and I found an absolutely adorable one! It is called the Black-bearded tomb bat. They have a face that reminds me of a shrew with a beard. Its face points outward and they have big round ears on top of their head. Their fur is brown with a little bit of gray and sometimes even red. The dense fur covers most of their body, but it stops before it covers their face. I think this makes their fur look slightly mane-like. The male Black-bearded tomb bats have seasonal black-ish brown beards that they grow to attract mates. Black-bearded tomb bats are found in a variety of places including Indonesia, China, India, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, and Thailand. They roost in rainforests, woodlands, and abandoned buildings. They roost near where they can find their favorite foods. They eat insects like many other bats, but they also enjoy munching on fruit. If you would like to learn more about these bats, you can find information here  and here.

Adorable and fruity!

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week. I was looking up interesting bats from around the world and found a really adorable one called the Rousettus Bat. Rousettus bats are also more commonly known as Egyptian Fruit Bats. These bats have orange-yellow fur around their necks that match nicely with the dark brown and gray fur along their backs and stomachs. Rousettus bats are found in the tropical rainforests, savanna, and tropical deciduous forests in Africa. They are also found in scrub forests of Mediterranean Turkey. Egyptian Fruit bats eat a lot of fruit each night. They like to eat soft, pulpy fruit, especially wild dates. They also eat unripe fruit and fruit damaged by insects or fungus. Because they eat this fruit, they are able to survive when ripe fruit is not available. If you would like to read more about the Rousettus bat, you can find information here. And now for the exciting news! Herndon Nature Fest is tomorrow afternoon from 1 – 5 PM. It is being held at Runnymede Park, 195 Herndon Pkwy in Herndon, VA. Save Lucy’s President, Mrs. Sturges, will be there with some bats and I will be there too! If you are in the area, I hope to see you there. Have a good week!

Carolinas on my mind…

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week. Mine was pretty good. People in the Carolinas are having a really hard time though. Hurricane Florence made landfall yesterday and is causing a disaster in North and South Carolina. This week’s blog is dedicated to the people of North and South Carolina. I hope they are able to stay safe during the storm and are able to return to their homes soon. I researched a bat that lives in the Carolinas. It is an adorable bat species called the Seminole bat. The bats are found in a wide range. They live in the forested regions of eastern Texas, north to southeastern Oklahoma, central Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia, North and South Carolina, and into south-central Virginia. And, if you’ll remember, there were a few Seminole bats found in Northern Virginia not too long ago. These furry little critters have an interesting place that they like to roost. They roost in Spanish moss! They also like loose tree bark that they can squeeze under. A lot of their roosts are in dark locations where they can drop down into flight. The Seminole bat has mahogany colored fur with silver-ish tips that give the bats their beautiful reddish coloring. The Seminole bat eats insects. They especially like leafhoppers, flies, beetles, bees, and ants. If you would like to read more about these bats, you can do so here.

Whiskers!!

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week! The best part of mine was the holiday on Monday. It was nice to sleep late and relax. There was a powerful earthquake in Japan on Thursday. I would like to dedicate this week’s blog to the people of Japan. My thoughts are with you all as you recover from this earthquake. I read about an adorable Japanese bat called the Yanbaru Whiskered bat. These bats have black fur over most of their body, with some hairs having silver colored tips. This bat was first discovered in 1996 and has been listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. This is because its habitat is only 39 square miles of land. The Yanbaru Whiskered bat is only found on a few of Japan’s islands: three of the islands of the Ryukyu Archipelago, Okinawa, Amami Oshima, and Tokunoshima. This bat roosts in hollow trees. Because this bat’s habitat range is so small, deforestation is a major threat. If you would like to read more about the Yanbaru Whiskered bat, you can find information here. As you are making your plans for the rest of the month, please consider attending Herndon’s Naturefest. It will be on September 23 from 1-5:00 at Runnymede Park in Herndon, VA. Save Lucy’s esteemed leader, Mrs. Sturges, and I will both be there. And best of all, Mrs. Sturges will bring some of our batty friends. I hope you all have a good week.

Arizona’s ghosts!

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week. It was the first week of school for me. For the most part, it was pretty good, but I do miss sleeping late every day. Arizona Senator John McCain passed away on the 25th. He was a senator for 31 years, before that he served two terms in the US House of Representatives. He also served as a Naval pilot in Vietnam where he became a decorated war hero. This week’s blog is dedicated to Senator John McCain. My thoughts are with his family. I decided to write about a bat from Senator McCain’s home state of Arizona and found a very interesting looking one called the Ghost Faced Bat. This bat gets its name from the way they look. Unlike a lot of other bats, the ears of a Ghost Faced bat join at their head. The ears are large and round and connect to the head near their cheeks. This makes their eyes look smaller than usual and appear to be inside of their ears! The also have leaf shaped flaps of skin that protrude from their chin. They are very handsome! Unlike a lot of bats, these bats live in places that don’t get too cold during the winter. For this reason, they don’t hibernate and are active year-round. And because they are content where they are, they don’t migrate either. These bats live throughout Mexico, Texas, Arizona, and into Central America. Their habitat is desert scrub and they roost in caves, abandoned mines, tunnels and old buildings. They eat insects like all other bats in the United States. Instead of foraging near water, they hunt for their flying dinner far above ground. If you would like to read more about these amazing bats, you can find […]

Hang on Ope’ape’a

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week! I had a fun week, but sadly, it is now over. School starts on Tuesday, and I am not ready to start getting up early again. It’ll be nice to see my friends, but I do wish school could start a nice 2 or 3 hours later. Wouldn’t that be nice? There is currently a hurricane heading toward the islands of Hawaii. I thought I would write about a bat that lives there. As it turns out, Hawaii’s native bat, the Hawaiian Hoary Bat, is the only native land mammal to Hawaii. Sadly, the Hawaiian Hoary Bat has been on the endangered species list since 1970. Like many of the bats on the endangered list, this bat’s problems are due to deforestation and pesticide use. This bat likes to eat insects and lives in the forests of the islands of Kauai, Maui, the Big Island of Hawaii, Oahu, Molokai, and Koolawe. The bat has only recently been confirmed on Koolawe. The Hawaiian Hoary Bat is brown/grey colored and has white tips on their extremities. The bats are about 6 inches long and weigh about an ounce. If you would like to read more about the Hawaiian Hoary Bat, you can find information here.

When bloggers travel…

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week! I went to Montreal for vacation! It was amazing. Montreal is a great city to visit and I highly recommend it. While I didn’t get to see lots of bats flying around at night, I know that Montreal has some cute ones. I decided to write this week’s blog on a little bat from Canada. The Eastern Small-footed bat is adorable! It is the smallest bat in North America and is only about 20 cm long with its wings stretched out. It has, as its name suggests, small feet. Their feet are less than half an inch long! Isn’t that adorable? They have brown fur with golden highlights, and a black furry face and ears. Their range is all the way from Virginia and West Virginia, into Pennsylvania, New York, and Canada. Even though they have a very big range, the Eastern Small-footed bat is the rarest bat in North America. One reason this species is threatened is because of problems with their roosts. They roost in caves, mines, and even under large rocks and other tight crevices. Many of their roosts are being disturbed while the bats are hibernating. Another serious problem these bats are facing is White Nose Syndrome. It is estimated that White Nose Syndrome has killed 12% of the species. When combined with other threats to the species, WNS is having a devastating affect on the Eastern Small-footed Bat. If you would like to read more about this bat, you can find information here.

Explore your world:Indonesia

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week. I went back-to-school shopping. It was fun to buy new clothes for school. The people in Indonesia haven’t been having such a great week. There was a really bad earthquake there. I decided to learn about a bat from Indonesia. I found an adorable bat called the Fawn Leaf-nosed bat. They got their name from their leaf shaped nose. Their nose narrows at the front to make their leaflets more visible than those of other leaf-nosed and horseshoe bats. Another distinguishing feature this bat has is their big ears. Fawn Leaf-nosed bats have adorable triangular ears. They have grayish-brown or orangey colored fur. Like most other bats, these guys eat yummy crunchy insects. They especially like moths and beetles. Fawn Leaf-nosed bats roosts in caves and abandoned mines. They also take shelter in sheds and other buildings. They live in areas close to water, such as rainforests and open Savannah woodlands. These bats range from Southeast Asia and Melanesia to the Coen region and Cape York. If you want to read more about these bats you can do so here.