Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good week and a very Merry Christmas! I had an awesome Christmas and I got some really cool presents. I even got a brand new Save Lucy t-shirt! Since this will be my last blog post of the year, I thought it would be nice to look back at everything that happened in 2017.

I know a lot of bad things happened in 2017. White Nose Syndrome continued to spread, sadly with no end in sight. There were hurricanes, earthquakes, and wildfires. More than half of Puerto Rico is still without power. Honestly, it’s been a rough year for a lot of people and a lot of critters.

That said, some good things happened too. So, let’s focus on the good…

 On January 24, Fiona the Hippo was born at the Cincinnati Zoo. She soon became an international internet sensation bringing joy to millions of people around the world. She is absolutely adorable!

A 12 year old Romanian boy risked his life to save the life of a toddler who had become trapped in a pipe.

There was a total solar eclipse seen throughout North America on August 21. There won’t be another seen on the continent until 2024.

And in bat news, a new bat was discovered roosting in East Devon. The grey long-eared bat is rare to the UK. There are only about 3,000 of them, so this discovery was great news!

More good news came out of Europe in 2017. Thanks to Europe’s strict laws protecting bats, it was found that European bats are making a comeback. Many bat populations on the continent have increased by 43% since 1993.

And last but not least, Northern Long-Eared bats were found on the island of Nantucket, Massachusetts and coastal South Carolina.

So, as you can see, there were plenty of good things that happened in 2017. Let’s hope that 2018 will be an even better year!

Happy New Year Everyone!