Went out for the first really dark night ride of the season last night and i had a number of bats that were interested in my helmit light. one of them flew diretly at me and only just did a 180 in time not to land on my face. It was funny the wing span took up my entire field of vision and i felt the air from its wings.

It is the first time i can remember that bats have got close to my on a night ride and 4 or 5 swooped down at me. Is thi normal of do i have the radar siqniture of a moth?

The light was probably attracting insects, which in turn were attracting bats.

I doubt they were getting confused as they can see (contrary to the saying) and they can modify their echolocation to increase the level of detail to very high levels.

I get it quite a lot. There is a wide fast trail through the trees in our woods that seems prone to it. I have even started calling it star wars as it feels like you are in the middle of some kind of dog fight in that canyon thing on the death star! Anyways, lights attract insects, insects attract moths. Simples.

They do put on stunning displays for flying. But as good as they are, one daft bat flew into me last year on my eveing commute and stunned itself and bounced off my leg . That got the heart rate up instantly (and prompted lots of swearing) 👿

Bats put on quite a good aerobatic display outside my sitting room window most nights, of a certain time of year.

Only seen one on a night ride though.

They’re mad
🙂

does your helmet light emit a high-pitched whistle?

udnylad – Member
They do put on stunning displays for flying. But as good as they are, one daft bat flew into me last year on my eveing commute and stunned itself and bounced off my leg . That got the heart rate up instantly (and prompted lots of swearing)

I didn’t know bats could swear! I think it’s sweet that you cared enough to check his heart rate after the incident.

get a hand grenade !

http://www.bats.org.uk/pages/bats_and_rabies.html
http://www.bmj.com/content/326/7392/726.extract

not always harmless.

udnylad – Member
…But as good as they are, one daft bat flew into me last year on my eveing commute and stunned itself and bounced off my leg . That got the heart rate up instantly (and prompted lots of swearing)

I sympathise completely. One silly old bat rear ended my car on the A33 while she was “checking in her handbag”.

not always harmless.

Mainly harmless.

Very little chance of rabies being an issue to anyone if they don’t handle bats.

Get plenty here too.

Luminous – while out riding last week with your 601, I genuinely “stunned” several rabbits – lol!

I regularly have close encounters with bats on a night ride. One got stuck in one of my helmet vents for about 5 seconds. I absolutely sh@t myself!! 😯

A pheasant flew in to my head this morning, the dozy bugger even had full daylight to avoid me!

They’ve just been released for the shoots so it’s carnage at the moment – Darwin in action.

Very little chance of rabies being an issue to anyone if they don’t handle bats.

I used to do bat related things for a living. Daubentons are the species known to carry rabies, but they mainly feed over water, rather than foraging in woodland.

In any case, you shouldn’t handle bats unless absolutely necessary (risk of rabies and it’s against the law to mither them), and if you’re bitten, you MUST get a rabies jab as soon as possible, even if you are already vaccinated against rabies.

As soon as you’re showing symptoms of rabies, it’s too late, you’re a dead man.

Last verified case of rabies in the UK is…?!

Several years ago, a licensed bat worker (LBW) in Scotland, as detailed in the links posted by someone else above.

The key thing to bear in mind is that LBWs are as a rule vaccinated against rabies, are well aware of the risks, understand a decent amount of bat ecology and behaviour and only ever handle bats whilst wearing gloves, so the risk is massively reduced for them. The vast majority of cases of a bat being handled will be by a bat worker, and even then, handling bats is seen as a last resort due to animal welfare issues.

Joe Public who’s got a bat caught in his lid vent is a very different matter – there’s a far greater risk of being bitten.

2002 -Dundee – if you read Macavity link 😉

<dooh too slow>

saw a few yesterday on the night ride yesterday, along with a few deer, a fox, and a couple of barn owls (may have been the same one a couple of times…) One of the best things about night rides.

Joe Public who’s got a bat caught in his lid vent is a very different matter – there’s a far greater risk of being bitten[/I]

Except the likelihood of that happening is incredibly low. Plus riders tend to wear gloves which would minimise risk of a bite even if it did.

One person, a bat worker, has contracted rabies in the last hundred years. Out of 9000 bats tested 9 have been found to have the live virus.

I’d say having bats fly where you’re riding isn’t really an issue eh? 🙂

Dave (licenced bat worker)

I’d say having bats fly where you’re riding isn’t really an issue eh?

I’m not suggesting that a large number of bats are flying around giving people rabies, but that it’s worth knowing that if you do get bitten, you need to get a rabies jab, because you cannot wait for symptoms.

My wings are like a shield of steel!

I hit a bat earlier this year – it was sprawled across my riding glasses before bouncing off and over my head.

It’s probably telling a similar story on Batflightworld at this moment – “stupid mtberhit me head on – thought they were intelligent and could see, but apparently not.”

try having one in yer bedroom whilst yer asleep then to be wakene :mrgreen:d up by fluttering wings an inch above ya head !!! not funny !!!!

Re: pheasants

They’ve just been released for the shoots so it’s carnage at the moment – Darwin in action.

I’m a firm believer that if pheasants were not bred for shooting they would be extinct by now. They really are the thickest, most stupid animal to ever walk the face of the Earth.
I mean, they even forget they can fly FFS, and when they do remember, they turn round and fly straight back into you. I’ve had that happen twice.