Category: Bats

More Bats

I’ve been going out to Valentine Well every night. Last night it was very slow so I guess I hit a peak period for awhile. Bats only tripped the trigger 5 times, on my best night the trigger was tripped 68 times. I will try again in a few days, tonight I’m going snake hunting.

I saw fresh Mountain Lion tracks at the well yesterday, they weren’t there the day before! I was hoping it would come back for a drink but I didn’t see it.

This is my setup. I use a 35mm lens on a Canon 7DMII. The laser trigger is set up to cover as much of the tank as possible, it is limited by the length of the cable to connect to the camera. I can buy a wireless transmitter that would help a lot with this issue. For this small tank, I can get by without it. The receiver/trigger is behind the lens and the laser is on the right. I blocked about a foot of the tank with a 2×4 to limit the open water a bit. The laser beam has to be low, just barely above the edge of the tank otherwise the bats tend to fly under it or trigger it after they are out of range.

I posted this on iNaturalist and the consensus is that this is a Yuma Myotis. This is one the best bat photos I’ve taken so far! For my best photos, I take the time to remove the metal rim in the background, a tedious process.

I wish I could have got the whole bat! A Townsend’s Big-eared Bat, very sharp!

Myotis sp. This isn’t as sharp but I like the wing hitting the water.

Bats Photography

Holy Bats, Batman

I went back to Valentine Well last night. I got set up for an evening of bat photography and tried a little different arrangement, hoping to get shots of bats flying straight toward the camera. I had little idea that this would be the best night of bat shooting I’ve ever had! I got at least three species and maybe four. Best of all, I finally got a good shot of a Townsend’s Big-eared Bat. I got one last spring but it was out of focus just enough to make it a photo I didn’t really want to show anyone. Anyway, it was fun and I will back out there tonight. I have some ideas on how improve and will see if they work.

My Townsend’s Big-eared Bat, coming up off the water just after getting a drink. I could be a little sharper but it is pretty good!

Pallid Bat, I got three pretty sharp images. I like this one for the reflection on the water.

Another Myotis sp., maybe a California or Small-footed Myotis.

Pallid Bat. As always, right click on an image and open in a new tab to see a larger version.

Astrophotography Bats Photography

Bats!

It was a warm day, up near 90 F., so I decided to check Valentine Well for bat activity. It still is cooling down at night a little too much for good insect and bat activity, but at Valentine Well, there were lots of bats shortly after sunset. It is probably the only source of water for miles in any direction, since all of the ponds and natural tanks are dry. This is what I need, lots of bats, so I get lots of shots and then hope for a few good ones. Bats tripped the laser trigger 33 times and I got at least two very good images.