Baturday News is a weekly blog written by Rachael, a high school student, bat advocate, and Save Lucy volunteer. Rachael’s interest in bats was sparked by the big brown bats that used the outside of her former home for a winter roost. Rachael has been writing the Baturday News for over three years.

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week! I am excited that it is finally winter break. Friday was the last day of school until after New Year! I can’t wait for Christmas to come!!! The bats here at Save Lucy are all very excited too. They are looking forward to a yummy holiday meal of mealworms. Maybe they’ll get lucky and get some juicy waxworms too!

Since it is almost Christmas, I have been thinking about Santa Claus. And since Santa also goes by the name St. Nicholas, I thought I’d research someone by that name. There was a man named Saint Nicholas who was from a part of Greece that is now part of the southern coast of Turkey. So, in honor of Saint Nicholas, let’s all learn about bats from Greece. Shall we?

I found an awesome website that talks about all the bats found on the island of Crete (part of Greece). My favorite is the Mountain Long-eared Bat (Plecotus macrobullaris). It is a rare species of bat that lives all the way from the Alps, to the Balkans and Turkey. It is found in western Greece and in Crete. It was recognized as a separate species in 2003 and hasn’t been studied very much yet. It likes to live in caves found in the mountains. It can live in altitudes all the way up to 2800 meters (almost 9200 feet).

The website lists a lot of other kinds of bats too. If you want to read about them, you can find more information here:  http://www.cretanbeaches.com/en/fauna-and-animal-species/mammals-in-crete/bats-of-crete .

I hope you all have a good week. Stay warm!