Hancock Cave Bat Count

This year’s bat count at Hancock Cave started a bit shaky. I wasn’t sure who was coming and going as the week progressed, but Mike Broome and Lisa Lorenzin stepped forward at the last minute to help. Jenny Hundertmark, Mike, Lisa, and I stayed at Tanya McLaughlin’s house Friday night. On Saturday morning we met the campers: Matt Lubin, Matt Weiss, Matt Nelson, Steve Molnar, Ashland Nelson, and about six scouts. Having Matt Jenkins along just would’ve confused us more.

After the entrance climbs, we split into two groups in search of bats in the same rooms we’ve checked in past Novembers’ counts (since WNS was discovered there in 2009). My group seemed to enjoy clambering around while looking up at the ceiling. Matt N. dove into every hole I’d point out, and Matt L., Jenny, and the scouts followed him willingly into most of them. The squeeze out to Hickory Dickory Pit was one the adults enjoyed while the scouts stayed with me in the Echo Chamber.

We found three different bat species, and the other team also located a few bats that we didn’t see.  Both groups had to negotiate past the one at the base of the Corn Cob Crawl. The count was roughly the same as last year.

My team was lucky enough to come out to the cool temperatures first, so we donned our orange vests and hiked over to Little Hancock Cave (no bats there). The walls were alive with harvestmen so thick that the walls seemed to be moving. After a short search, they were able to find the Peacock Entrance to Hancock Cave (no bats there). We went back to the cars, changed clothes, examined the map, called into the cave for the other team, and eventually helped them exit. Next time we should remember to coordinate exit times.