Bat Girl

My sister Liz came to visit for for a couple days. It was just what I needed after a hard week. We had a great time. We went to the beach, explored some tidepools, made dinners, saw the Glee concert movie (in 3-D....why?), went to our favorite ice cream place, etc. But my highlight was what happened when we went creekwalking.


I had taken a bunch of college students creekwalking last Sunday and Liz and I wanted to go to snag more blackberries. Once we were in the creek, I noticed something flying around. At first I thought it was a bird. But then it got really close to my head and I realized - it was a BAT!

Um, aren't bats nocturnal? We see them by our house when the sun sets. I have NEVER seen one flying around in the middle of the day. And it was flying SO close to us! It would barely skim over our heads or fly by waist-high. I thought maybe he was deaf and his echolocation wasn't working. Whatever the case, he was small (maybe a baby?) and super cute. I know I know...how can bats be cute? I don't know, but this one was. Fuzzy with big ears and big nostrils. It landed on a tree stump and I got a good look at it. Cute!

So anyway, we're picking berries in the creek and he's flying around like he's our new best friend. Seriously, I felt like he was our pet. At one point he dipped down into the water, mid-flight, to drink. He turned and started coming towards me. "Come here, little guy!" I sang with my hands out as he flew toward me. (In retrospect, that was dumb.)

At the last second, he turned, and LANDED on Liz's shirt.

ON HER SHIRT!

To say Liz freaked out is the understatement of the year.

She immediately started jumping up and down and screaming, "SARAH! IS HE ON ME!!??! GET HIM OFFFFFFFF!!!" He was hanging on for dear life on the bottom right part of her shirt.

"Liz! Stop moving!!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOO get him off me!!!!!!"

"Ok, but stop moving!! Stop jumping!!"

She finally stopped and I was able to get nice and close. There our little bat friend was. Just chillin'. Like Liz was his mom and he found a nice new place to perch. I was admiring him (when I should have helped scoop him off her shirt) and finally Liz couldn't handle it anymore. The jumping continued.

"Eeeeeee!! Is he still on me?!?!?!? GET HIM OFF!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The more she jumped, the more the poor bat slid down her shirt. He was trying to stay on with his little claws (attached to his wings) but he kept falling lower and lower. Finally he was clinging on to her shorts and continuing to slip down. At the last minute (before he touched her leg) he finally let go and flew away.

And we never saw him again.

We think Liz gave him a heart attack and he died.

Here is Liz's re-enactment when we got back to the car: