The other day, as the Mother Thing was preparing to run some errands, she told me she found a bat on the ground beside her car. This was the middle of the afternoon, so not the time one would expect our aerobatics-inclined rodents to be out and about. One sometimes glimpses them around dusk when they feed on mosquitoes and other unwanted insects, but I have never seen one up close. Time for a look-see!
When I arrived, I found the little guy (or maybe gal, I'll assume its gender and hope it isn't offended) sprawled on the ground, looking as good as dead, but I've learned a thing or two over the years. I donned some leather gloves before I tried anything further. Sure enough, as I approached, the bat started to act defensive. He opened his little maw and showed off his array of tiny white teeth while emitting squeaky sounds I interpreted as an attempt to intimidate me. He failed his intimidation check, but I apparently passed my animal handling check as I carefully scooped him up.
For the uninitiated, those are Dungeons & Dragons terms. I do not apologize.
I asked the Mother Thing to find a suitable cardboard box and fill a jar lid with water. The first was because he needed to be protected from roaming housecats, and the second in case he was dehydrated from being in the sun.
When I first moved to open my hands and set him inside the box, he started climbing up my glove toward my bare arm. To avoid being clawed or bit, I placed my other gloved hand into his path. Then, when he climbed on, I quickly moved that hand into the box. He quit climbing, but also refused to let go of the glove when presented with shelter, so I slid my hand free and left it there. It did no harm to let him perch upside-down on it. Bats do prefer to rest on vertical surfaces and overhangs, after all. I also wasn't sure what he would want to climb when he decided to leave, so I added some sticks of kindling for a perch or escape route as he might see fit.
For the longest time, he just seemed content to sit on the glove. I made sure the box was in the shade, and chatted with my mom while browsing the web on my phone for any further info. It seems I followed all the basic steps: keep myself safe from bites, handle with care, keep safe from cats or dogs, and give some space.
I'll be honest here and say I'm not even sure what species of bat he is. I found a number of possibilities. while looking up info on the Washington and Idaho wildlife sites since I am basically on the border between those states. The little brown bat is one obvious option just from the bland name, but a few other species live in the region, including the long-legged bat which roosts in trees. I think it could also be a siver-haired bat which also likes trees and tends to be more solitary. I assume he got lost or disoriented somehow, because I didn't see obvious signs of injury or disease. They can carry rabies, but I don't know how I would diagnose that.
After some time, I could hear some scratching sounds. He was moving around. I took this as a good sign. Sure enough, a minute or so later, he poked his head out of the box for a look around. I managed to get a halfway-decent shot with my phone camera as he peeked over the edge of the cardboard. I had the flash on. Oops. I've cropped the photo to show him a bit better. It took great willpower to resist attempting to pet the fluffy little fellow.
Shortly after this, he tried to take off, but fell from the table where the box was keeping him out of easy cat observation. It wasn't high enough for him to take flight. I tried to pick him up again, but he scrambled for the edge of the deck and launched himself into the air. This time, there was enough height for him to get airborne and stay that way, so rest and/or water must have been enough to reinvigorate him.
I was able to see him flutter into a stand of trees about 20 yards away where he found a spot to perch on the bark where he blended in perfectly. As far as I know, he's out and about free and healthy again, although I will probably never know for sure. In any case, I wish him the best of luck. Bats, like spiders, get a bad reputation as spooky Halloween critters, but how can you hate something that eats mosquitoes? Three cheers for the fledermaus (flitter-mouse)!
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