Final Figures:

Selman System: Totals: 72,696 Myotis velifer (Myotis) - 58 Pipistrellus subflavus (Pips) - 3 Eptesicus fusus (Big Brown)

Washita Bat (all 3 caves): Totals: 11,114 velifer, 76 pips

Jester: 116 pips, 14,186 velifer

Wired: 117 velifer, 1 pip

Homstead: 10 Big Ears (Corybnorhinus townsendii), 113 velifer, 4 pips

1. Saturday - February 17th... 3rd Weekend in February... typically the coldest weekend of the year. And this year was pretty chilly! Six cavers head to the NW part of Oklahoma to do the annual Oklahoma Bat Count. Two teams and lots of caverns and passages to look into! Another set of cavers headed to the SW part to do the caves there and we would meet Sunday at Central Oklahoma.

2. Here, Dan, Anne, and I get ready to go into Oooh Ahh entrance. Notice the Snow/Ice on the ground! Finally a cold February (compared to the last couple of years!)

3. And boy howdy was it chilly in the caves! 32 degrees in most of the passage where the bats were! (there is even a report from the other team that the snow melt actually encased a whole mat of bats in a solid block of ice!

4. So what is all of this about? Typically bats will be deep in hibernation at this time of year. This is the time we actually come into their areas and try to get a count on actual bodies. These are then published and researchers, scientists, and bat experts compare other readings and give us an overall look at populations in the state, region, and country. Here a Myotis Veliper is sleeping out the winter.

5. Usually these bats hang out in giant groups (called Mats). They pack in and this year hit 275 per square foot. Entire walls can be covered with bats. It's the counters job to measure the size of the mat (after getting a packing rate) and then our numbers expert (Sue) figures out the total of bats in that particular mat. The person counts out 2 by 3 meaning a mat of bats is 2 feet left to right and 3 feet up and down. On smaller groups, you just give the count of the number (for instance 48, 1, 3, 18, etc...)

6. Here is my glove (left side) to give you an ideal of scale of the size of these only true flying mammals.

7. This guy was on the ground and trying to make it back up to the top. That's my shoe next to it... Actually before I said my glove... nope.. I left SW Oklahoma without my caving shoes or gloves.. so I borrowed the gloves and caved loafer style (what an idiot!) (Toss those shoes!!)

8. Something I had not ever seen before was entire mini-mats on the ground. This group was just laying still bundled up. We found a couple of these and had to watch where we were stepping! We also saw a couple that were eaten (guess by raccoons)

9. They can be in plain site on the side of a wall....

10. Or weggied into a crack (as many as they could squeeze in!)

11. Temperatures ranged from 32 degrees in the caves to 48 in our sections. On our way out we found a big brown! First time in many many years! It would be one of three we found on the way out. He was out cold... usually these bats are very skittish and take off at first signs that you are on the way.

12. Notice the hair is longer almost mink (Sable) coat like compared to the ones above. He's also about two of the others in size.

13. About five hours later (and easily over 10,000 bats later), it's up to the surface! Everybody rests a bit before the hike back to the cars. Ann takes a water break, while Dan (opposite) takes a long needed smoke. Official counts will be tabulated and posted soon. There were pages and pages of count and many mats which have to be tabulated.

14. We headed back and waited for the other team before leaving the cave property. They were done about two hours after us... It's mighty cold waiting so we took a tour of the surrounding entrances.

15. There was snow melt frozen to really neat icicle at most of the entrances.

16. This one looks like a gaping jaw of death.... the top teeth and if you look inside, there were stalagmites growing from the ground. We get excited about stuff like that with Gypsum caves. We don't usually see too many formations like they do in those pretty limestone caves!!   Tomorrow.. on to Central OK!

17. Sunday - We lose some and gain others. Out in the middle of farm / ranch country we get ready to count bats in Western Central Oklahoma. We're on our way to the Washita Cave System. Not as cold (air temp) but a good wind makes it feel colder!

18. To get to the entrance you have to descend down almost a cliff down to the creek level.

19. Once you get to water level you have to climb over breakdown to get to the entrance.

20. This cave has a skylight where a dome room has collapsed. There is a giant tree growing out of the side halfway down. This is a scary pit if you get too close! About 30 feet down!

21. Same pit but from inside looking out.

22. We all got our stuff together, made teams, compared thermometers, etc... then headed out. And at this point, my stupid digital camera quit working!!!! (STUPID CAVE DUST!) So... the rest of the trip that was taken really wasn't! Psych!!