Red Bats Fascinate At Staff Training

Our wildlife staff knows a lot more about Red Bats, Burying Beetles, Honeybees, Smooth and Rough Green Snakes, and two colorful songbirds, the Cerulean Warbler and the Indigo Bunting thanks to a recent trip to Columbus to attend the Ohio Division of Wildlife’s “Wildlife Diversity Conference.”
Some of the most fascinating information we gleaned from the conference presentations concerned Red Bats.We learned that recent studies have shown that Red Bats, one of the 6 common Northern Ohio Bats, can hibernate in winter simply hanging from a tree branch camouflaged like a dead oak leaf. Even more surprising, some of them will hibernate buried in dead leaves on the ground, even under snow which actually helps insulate them from the frigid winter temperatures.
The Wildlife Diversity Conference offers a tremendous opportunity for us to learn the latest animal data from experts currently studying specific species. In addition to all the featured animal presentations, we also heard about the benefit of Ecotourism and how that relates to appreciation and enjoyment of Nature, even right here in Northern Ohio.
It’s amazing that there is so much humans still don’t know about Nature and abundant opportunities for us to continue to learning. The wildlife staff at Lake Erie Nature & Science Center is proud to be continually increasing our knowledge to better educate and inspire all those who seek our services. - Dave Wolf, Director of Wildlife