We're Batty for Bats!

Have you started the "Bugs in the Belly" activity yet?  At the GBBR, we think bats are awesome, but but many people are confused by the myths surrounding bats.

Myths are widely held beliefs that often explain something in the natural world. Another word for myth is: tale, legend, folklore or story. Let's take a look at some bat myths and see which are true and which are false.

Myth #1: Blind as a bat!   (False)

Have you ever heard the phrase "you're as blind as a bat"?  It's a funny because bats are not blind!  In fact, that can "see" better than humans can due to the fact that they use both their eyes and a highly developed sense called echolocation. Echolocation is a series of extremely high frequency chips, produced by the bat and emitted as sound waves, that bounce off objects and prey (insects).  When bounced, these sound waves then return to the bat, helping it navigate and hunt.

Myth #2: Ew! Bats can get caught up in my hair! (False)

Bats sometimes will swoop around your head as they are hunting for insects to eat.  Don't worry though, their use of echolocation will prevent them from actually landing on your head.  Think of them as protecting you from biting insects!

Myth #3:  Bats can fly, just like birds!  (False-ish)

While bats do indeed fly, but unlike birds, most bats cannot fly straight from the ground. Bats instead need to be off the ground in order gain enough momentum to fly.  So if you find a bat indoors, what should you do? If it is on the floor, the best thing is to find a towel and allow the bat to slowly climb onto it.  Most objects in our homes are smooth and so it is difficult for bats to maneuver on them, but a towel is textured.  Once it is on, carefully walk the towel outside and place it near a tree for the bat to climb up.

Myth #4:  I can contract lung disease from bat guano  (True)

Guano, is another word bat scat, droppings or poop!  Histoplasmosis is a fungal disease that can be contracted if you are in an area where you may breathe in fungal spores found in areas with these bat droppings. If you are working in an area where bats are roosting (like an attic) you will want to wear a suitable respirator mask.

Myth #5:  I can contract rabies from bats (True)

Rabies is a disease that is spread through coming in contact with the saliva of an infected animal, usually in the form of a bite. Luckily, less than 1% of bats have rabies, but it is still important to protect yourself. If you come in contact with a bat (for example to remove it from your home) there are a few things you can do: wear leather gloves; wear a long sleeved shirt; take the bat outside using a towel or container that you can leave at the base of the tree for it to climb.

Myth #6:  Bats are mean (False!!)

Have you been watching vampire movies?  Bats are wonderful creatures and, in some parts of the world, have been known to share food with other bats! The biggest enemies to a bat is habitat loss and white-nosed syndrome.  There are many things you can do to help bats:

• Garden with plants that bloom day and night to attract pollinating insects. You’ll boost habitat, and may bring hungry bats swooping by. Try fireweed, snowberry, goldenrod, cardinal flower.

• Trade outdoor anti-bug lights for a regular light to attract insects for bats to munch on.

• Build a bat house using the Canadian Wildlife Federation’s online plans. 

• Educate your friends and family about how important bats are!

Three cheers for flying bats and purring cats!

Lighting up the Backyard

On warm summer nights you may have noticed fireflies blinking light on and off. It's hard to imagine what a firefly looks like without catching one and seeing it up close! With the "Insects in the Night" activity, we want to make sure that the firefly is safe when you capture it! So, let's see how you can catch these amazing insects without harm.

Photo by: stevendavidjohnson.com

Where should you look? 

Fireflies are most often found near bodies of water such as marshy areas and shorelines of ponds, lakes, and rivers. You will still often see fireflies even if you are not in a wet area, such as your yard, a field, forest, or vegetable garden!

Turn out the lights

If you are having trouble finding fireflies, turn off outdoor light!  Exterior house lights might be confusing nearby fireflies making them less likely to send out their light signals to other fireflies.

Safe capture

Catch your fireflies using a net!  Follow these steps to ensure safe capture:
- Find fireflies by watching your yard for their flashing lights.
- Walk to where firefly was nearby and capture using a insect/butterfly net.
- Tighten the top of the net with your hand so that the firefly cannot escape. Make sure when you do this that the firefly is at the bottom of the net, out of the way of your hands.
- Turn your net over, on top of your bug jar, and carefully let the firefly leave the net and go into the jar.
-Once it is in the jar, place a lid on top.

Fireflies are fragile, so be sure to have another set of helping hands nearby!

If you are planning to keep your firefly for longer than a few minutes, think about adding a small piece of moistened paper towel inside the jar to keep the air humid.

Letting them go:

Fireflies cannot survive in your jar, so be sure to release them after maximum 10 minutes.  Always  release them at night, when they are most active and able to avoid predators.

Have fun catching these awesome bugs in the dark!

http://www.firefly.org/

Three cheers for fireflies and clear blue skies!

Don't get tongue tied!

Have you ever noticed that snakes flick their tongues? Did you notice their tongue is forked (split into two)?  Some people think this is strange... but the reason why is so cool!

Snakes have nostrils like we do, these are only to breathe.  When a snake needs to smell, it uses it's tongue!  Flicking their tongue allows them to pick up tiny particles, or "a scent", that are left behind by other snakes or animals.  These particles are transferred into the snakes mouth to a small organ on the roof of their mouth called the vomeronasal organ or the "Jacobson's organ".  This organ analyzes the scent and allows the snake to determine if what they are smelling is prey!

DeKay's Brown Snake - https://www.flickr.com/photos/pcoin/2307912302

Now why is their tongue forked?? It gives snakes almost a 3D smelling experience! Instead of capturing a general smell, their sense of smell is now directional! This is the perfect tool to help them track prey or potential mates!

This forked tongue can capture scents from the left and right side of their head. If a "scent" is stronger on the right, the snake will know to move right.  If the "scent" is equally strong on both sides, it will know to continue forward.  How cool is that?!

Eastern Hognose

So next time you see a snake flicking it's tongue, he's just giving you a sniff!  =)

Three cheers for scaly snakes and swimming in lakes!

The Sky is the Limit!

Weather is amazing!  It gives us warm sunny days, cool breezes, refreshing rain, and awesome thunderstorms.  Weather is the word we use to describe what happens in the Earth’s atmosphere that creates clouds, rain, and other forms of precipitation (like snow, sleet, freezing rain, rain or hail). 

The science behind studying the atmosphere, especially weather and weather forecasting, is called meteorology (me-tee-o-ROL-o-gee). Meteorologists develop weather forecasts based on a variety of things like humidity (amount of water vapour in the air), types of clouds, wind direction, and weather in other areas of the continent.  With our Wonderful Weather activities, you can be a meteorologist too!

Let’s go over some of the clouds you may see in your weather window:

Cirrus:  These clouds are high in the atmosphere and are formed from ice crystals. They create thin, wispy strands in the sky.  Often, these clouds can indicate a change in the weather, such as when a new “front” (the boundary between two air masses, often one mass being warm and one being cold) passes through. 

Cirrostratus: These clouds are also high in the sky, created when cirrus clouds are spread out extensively across the sky.  Sometimes they can even create the appearance of a halo around the sun!  Watch for these clouds if you have plans, they often indicate that precipitation will likely follow in the next 12 hours!

Photo by: Matthew Clark

Cirrocumulus: Similar to the past two cloud forms, these are also high. Meaning wispy heap or wispy accumulation, these are formed when Cirrus clouds are warmed from below making them into fluffy-looking, billowy heaps like other cumulus clouds. They tend to also appear as little cloudlets across the sky. While they may indicate rain on the way, these clouds make sure beautiful sunsets!

Altocumulus: These mid-level clouds are usually white or gray in colour and billowy looking.  Often times they are in patches or groups!  These clouds are often seen before temperatures cool down or on a warm summer day before a thunderstorm!

Altostratus: These clouds are also mid-level but instead of being billowy, they are more spread out across the sky. These clouds indicate a weather change since they form when a new "front" causes the air to condense and rise.  Get ready to be wet, they bring precipitation to wide-spread areas!

Cumulus: These clouds are low laying and are seen as fluffy heaps or accumulations. They appear when warm air rises from the ground.  They are often called "fair weather clouds" as they indicate enjoyable weather conditions. 

Stratocumulus: These low clouds are seen as large, round masses in dark groups or lines across the sky. While they are often seen before or after severe weather (like a storm) they can also bring light rain or snow.

Stratus: These gray clouds appear as low horizontal layers that blanket the sky.  Instead of appearing as a layer of smaller clouds (like we saw with stratocumulus clouds), they appear as one large blanket. If they form low enough to the ground, this is when we experience fog!

Nimbostratus: These clouds never take one particular form, so the best way to identify them is with what they all have in common...they are gray and spread out to block the sun.

Cumulonimbus: These clouds can be incredibly tall!  they may appear to be flat on the bottom and them climb into fluffy tall sides and then a flat top. This flatter top is caused by winds in the upper atmosphere. Air rising causes these clouds to grow vertically.  Seeing these clouds often means that precipitation is on the way, and usually leads to thunderstorms with a lot of thunder and lightning!  

Three cheers for sunny skies and apple pies!