MudDonna's Caving Escapades: 2018

I stumbled upon this Townsend Bat colony purely by accident while cave hunting. I was as surprised to see them as they were to see me! I stayed less than two minutes, not wanting to upset them further. I took this quick video so you all can enjoy seeing them in their natural environment.

My First Bat Rehabilitation Patient

Got a call from Kathy today, said she was sending a bat my way! I scrambled to gather supplies and drove out to meet the couple who called in to Bat Crew. They had found him last night, hardly moving on a cold garage floor. They took him in and kept him warm. By the time I picked him up, he was more feisty. He took a small amount of water, and then settled in for a long nap. I will try to squeeze some worms in his mouth tomorrow.

Defiance Cave Preserve: Drapery Den is Trashed

Last month, we headed to Drapery Den with Rob McFarland, Ken Headrick, Mike Frazier. We were armed with garbage bags and gloves, but were unprepared for what we found. We had expected to clean up trash that one person left behind. Instead, thigh high mountains of trash greeted us. Only multiple probably mentally ill people over a long period of time could have accumulated so much refuse. Old cans, bottles, wrappers, clothing, drug containers, broken furniture, camping equipment, magazines and more. It will take a small army to clean out this cave and make it habitable for bats again. We loaded and carried many bags to the surface of the cave, but were only able to carry a fraction down the mountain. We anticipate spending many weekends starting next spring on this project.

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Double Eagle Dig

Joined John McLean, Doug Medville, Todd Burke, Hunter, Paul Fowler, Mike Frazier and others for continued work on the Double Eagle Dig. At one point, we could hear Donald Davis tapping his hammer in a nearby passage, so a connection is imminent!

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via GIPHY

Bat Rehabilitation: My First Time Handling a Bat

Colorado Bat Crew at Vampire Fest

Tonight I joined in my first event with the Colorado Bat Crew at the Ft Collins Vampire Fest. We handed out educational materials on bats, showed some videos, answered questions from party-goers. Thanks always to Kathy Estes for her support in getting me closer to my goal of earning my Bat Rehabilitation Specialist License! For more info on the Colorado Bat Crew: http://www.coloradobatcrew.com/

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via GIPHY

Bat Exodus

I've been looking all over for this video! We visited friends a few years back and were fortunate to be treated to a bat exodus at a nearby cave!

B. Cave

Enjoyed a fantastic trip this Labor Day weekend. Rick Rhinehart invited us to a "little" gem of a cave he's known about for some time. Also along was Donald Davis, John McClain, Ken Headrick, Mike, and Guano.

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via GIPHY

Defiance Cave Preserve/Cave of the Clouds: Gate Project

In order to reduce vandalism to Cave of the Clouds and create a more secure area for bats, we are installing a gate. We have hauled 4000 pounds of cement (15-50 pounds at a time in backpacks) up the side of the mountain. Today, we undertake the brutal task of carrying up one of the steel gates.

Defiance Cave Preserve-Hauling the Final Gate

Thanks to all the volunteers who have jumped in and helped carry 4000 pounds of cement, steel and a very heavy generator to Cave of the Clouds. (add volunteer list) The following videos, showing a single steel gate being slowly dragged up the mountain, will give you an idea how difficult and dangerous the project has been at times.

Videos