# Bat Found in Teen's Bra!



## MA-Caver (Jul 8, 2008)

*Teenager finds baby bat in her bra*

  By Laura Clout 
         Last Updated: 1:47PM BST 08/07/2008
*A teenager was stunned to find that a baby bat had been curled up inside her bra for five hours - as she was wearing it. *






                     ADRIAN JUDD
                     Miss Hawkins said the bat looked 'very snug' inside her bra

             Abbie Hawkins, a hotel receptionist, thought her mobile phone was ringing when she felt vibrations coming from her clothes.
But she later discovered the tiny creature tucked away in the padded pocket of her underwear.
As staff and colleagues crowded around, Miss Hawkins, 19, produced the frightened bat, which was the size of her hand.
Article continues

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Ahem. As resident Bat Expert here on MT in an effort to prevent this from becoming an epidemic, I will need to start thoroughly searching bras everywhere for stowaway bats. Don't wait for vibrations. Trust me I'm a professional. 

NO, I'm not taking any assistants right now. But I'll let you guys know.


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## tshadowchaser (Jul 8, 2008)

she was wearing it and did not notice something was inside it. HHHMMM

strange indeed

I'll save my other comments till later


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## Drac (Jul 8, 2008)

MA-Caver said:


> Ahem. As resident Bat Expert here on MT in an effort to prevent this from becoming an epidemic, I will need to start thoroughly searching bras everywhere for stowaway bats. Don't wait for vibrations. Trust me I'm a professional.
> 
> NO, I'm not taking any assistants right now. But I'll let you guys know.


 

Such a caring, concerned individual...


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## MA-Caver (Jul 8, 2008)

Drac said:


> Such a caring, concerned individual...


Well understand it's for the bats sake that I'm willing to do this, they're fragile creatures and widely misunderstood... so they must be handled gently, carefully and s-l-o-w-l-y.


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## arnisador (Jul 8, 2008)

Weird...


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## Kreth (Jul 8, 2008)

I bet she's real pleased that millions of people now know that she pads her bra... :lol:


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## terryl965 (Jul 8, 2008)

I guess she is just stupid if she could not feel the bat.


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## MBuzzy (Jul 8, 2008)

MA-Caver said:


> Well understand it's for the bats sake that I'm willing to do this, they're fragile creatures and widely misunderstood... so they must be handled gently, carefully and s-l-o-w-l-y.


 
How long does the average bra-bat inspection take?


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## MA-Caver (Jul 8, 2008)

MBuzzy said:


> How long does the average bra-bat inspection take?


 Well, that all depends upon the size of the bra now doesn't it?


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## Kacey (Jul 8, 2008)

I just want to know how you miss a fist-sized animal in your bra.  :idunno:


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## donna (Jul 8, 2008)

Kacey said:


> I just want to know how you miss a fist-sized animal in your bra.  :idunno:


I agree, Especially if it was as big as the rubber looking thing in the photo!!
 Then again those are decent sized cups she is holding and if she was padding them up to that size maybe you wouldnt feel anything??


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## MA-Caver (Jul 8, 2008)

donna said:


> I agree, Especially if it was as big as the rubber looking thing in the photo!!
> Then again those are decent sized cups she is holding and if she was padding them up to that size maybe you wouldnt feel anything??


I sincerely doubt that the bat was a "baby" as stated in the article. Bats come in all sizes, from as small as a hummingbird to the size of a small cat (aka flying foxes). Little Brown Bats are about 1 oz in weight and probably smaller than the palm of a child's hand... so a youngster could conceivably be snug inside the "pocket" of the bra and the girl wouldn't notice until it moved. 
The girl wasn't in any danger of being bitten either. Most bats are gentle and don't bite unless mishandled (like women when a guy is checking their bras for bats inside-- while still wearing them).

Besides what kind a gal keeps her cell phone inside her bra anyway?


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## exile (Jul 8, 2008)

Does anyone besides me find this whole 'episode' a little suspicious???? That damned 'bat' in her hand _was_ a toy. This has _got_ to be a gag.

*Added in edit*: let me strengthen this a little: I've been a member of Bat Conservation Int'l for years and have seen zillions of pictures of bats... and never once, never ever ever, not in their mags, not in David Attenborough or National Geographic specials, _nowhere_, have I ever seen a bat with red eyes. Never ever ever. This whole thing is a crock, I would love to bet... like, _serious_ folding money on.


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## MA-Caver (Jul 8, 2008)

exile said:


> Does anyone besides me find this whole 'episode' a little suspicious???? That damned 'bat' in her hand _was_ a toy. This has _got_ to be a gag.
> 
> *Added in edit*: let me strengthen this a little: I've been a member of Bat Conservation Int'l for years and have seen zillions of pictures of bats... and never once, never ever ever, not in their mags, not in David Attenborough or National Geographic specials, _nowhere_, have I ever seen a bat with red eyes. Never ever ever. This whole thing is a crock, I would love to bet... like, _serious_ folding money on.



I see that the bat in her bra/hand is a fake yes, as she stated in the article that 





> The teenager's general manager freed the bat in the hotel garden.


 so they put the rubber bat (which I have one like it hanging from my rear-view mirror) in her "bra" to illustrate the point. 
I'm glad that you're a BCI member by the way. 
But you've seen "_zillions_ of pictures of bats" ?? hmm if *anything* sounds like a crock that sure does... :lol: How many zeros are there in a zillion? a Zillion has z*6 zeros where z = one zill so that's a LOT of pictures there Arnisador! (just kidding)


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## Sukerkin (Jul 8, 2008)

I think the shot is certainly posed with a prop.  From my time as a speleologist I've seen bats aplenty and they dislike at least two things intensely:

1)  Bright lights
2)  Being touched by humans (tho' I did have the privelege of having one briefly sit on my shoulder once in a lovely little cave system under Joey Bamford's land (he of JCB fame)).


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## tellner (Jul 8, 2008)

Quick Robin! To the bat cave!


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## exile (Jul 8, 2008)

MA-Caver said:


> I see that the bat in her bra/hand is a fake yes, as she stated in the article that  so they put the rubber bat (which I have one like it hanging from my rear-view mirror) in her "bra" to illustrate the point.
> I'm glad that you're a BCI member by the way.
> But you've seen "_zillions_ of pictures of bats" ?? hmm if *anything* sounds like a crock that sure does... :lol: How many zeros are there in a zillion? a Zillion has z*6 zeros where z = one zill so that's a LOT of pictures there Arnisador! (just kidding)



Unlike actual numbers, a zillion contains an implicit comparison: if you've seen  zillions of cats, that's a lot of cats, but if you've seen zillions of Mesopotamian ziggurats, twenty will do. OK, so now... 

BCI's mag usually has 5-10 per issue... over the course of the 10 years or so I've been a member, and given the number of picture of bats you normally see on TV, in the newspapers and newsmagazines, etc..... yes, that computes out to zillions!


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## Kreth (Jul 8, 2008)

exile said:


> BCI's mag usually has 5-10 per issue... over the course of the 10 years or so I've been a member, and given the number of picture of bats you normally see on TV, in the newspapers and newsmagazines, etc..... yes, that computes out to zillions!


I have this strange image in my head of bat layouts a la Penthouse or Hustler... Ok, I just creeped myself out... :barf:


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## exile (Jul 8, 2008)

Kreth said:


> I have this strange image in my head of bat layouts a la Penthouse or Hustler... Ok, I just creeped myself out... :barf:



Well, it's truenot one single bat in any of those BCI 'shoots' was wearing clothes... so they've got that much in common with those other photo spreads you mentioned... :lol:


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## MA-Caver (Jul 8, 2008)

exile said:


> Unlike actual numbers, a zillion contains an implicit comparison: if you've seen  zillions of cats, that's a lot of cats, but if you've seen zillions of Mesopotamian ziggurats, twenty will do. OK, so now...
> 
> BCI's mag usually has 5-10 per issue... over the course of the 10 years or so I've been a member, and given the number of picture of bats you normally see on TV, in the newspapers and newsmagazines, etc..... yes, that computes out to zillions!


You should get down to Carlsbad Caverns National Park there you'll see a GAZILLION bats... mexican freetails...


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## exile (Jul 8, 2008)

MA-Caver said:


> You should get down to Carlsbad Caverns National Park there you'll see a GAZILLION bats... mexican freetails...



Whoa, _gazillions??!_ Now _that_ is going to be a lot of bats!! 

I'd really like to do that. We have a trip to the SW somewhere hazily planned up the line, and all three of us are bat-lovers. But first I need to achieve at least a green belt in photography with a digital camera, lol...


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## MA-Caver (Jul 8, 2008)

exile said:


> Whoa, _gazillions??!_ Now _that_ is going to be a lot of bats!!
> 
> I'd really like to do that. We have a trip to the SW somewhere hazily planned up the line, and all three of us are bat-lovers. But first I need to achieve at least a green belt in photography with a digital camera, lol...


 all you really need is a good tripod and a way releasing the shutter without touching the camera too much (think cable release)... as far as the settings... well ... let me get back to you on that...


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## MA-Caver (Jul 13, 2008)

exile said:


> Unlike actual numbers, a zillion contains an implicit comparison: if you've seen  zillions of cats, that's a lot of cats, but if you've seen zillions of Mesopotamian ziggurats, twenty will do. OK, so now...
> 
> BCI's mag usually has 5-10 per issue... over the course of the 10 years or so I've been a member, and given the number of picture of bats you normally see on TV, in the newspapers and newsmagazines, etc..... yes, that computes out to zillions!



Hey, Exile, see if you can identify this species... one picture as is and another zoomed in (by the photographer). It's location is somewhere in the Southwest for a clue. 
Another caver took it's picture and was asking around for the species. I never seen one like it but think it's an awfully cute little thing. Note the hole in the wing... also another clue to the species.


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## exile (Jul 13, 2008)

MA-Caver said:


> Hey, Exile, see if you can identify this species.



That's easy&#8212;it's a pallid bat (_Antrazous pallidous_) going by the appearance of the poor critter... look at at the size of the eyes! 

(Not sure about the hole in the wing, though... are these little fellows prone to that injury more than other bats?)


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## MA-Caver (Jul 13, 2008)

exile said:


> That's easy&#8212;it's a pallid bat (_Antrazous pallidous_) going by the appearance of the poor critter... look at at the size of the eyes!


Good guess... one expert says : 



> I would say CORTOW if I had to guess . . . when you look at a CORTOW head on, the tips of the tragi and ears and muzzle appear very dark like that (especially when the rest of the furry parts of the bat are blown out by a too hot flash). ANTPAL is more consistently light in the face . . . no big pointy tragus or lumpy face to absorb light . . . but that hole in the wing just SCREAMS ANTPAL to me; and 100 bats is REALLY big for a CORTOW colony (but with bats, just a couple dozen can seem like "hundreds"). But, ANTPAL isn't as common in western CO as CORTOW; and the majority of CORTOW maternity colonies in CO are found in uranium mines. So, all evidence points to CORTOW . . . tho many a suspect has been wrongfully convicted on far less.
> 
> The spot on the wing is a hole...typical of a ANTPAL as they are scrappy little buggers, but any bat with some miles on it could have a hole.
> http://forums.caves.org/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=7003&p=58269#p58269


Whatever it is, it's just cute. Also Pallid bats that I've seen (very rare sighting at that) have longer and more tapered ears. This guy's ears are more triangular in shape... wouldn't you agree?


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## exile (Jul 13, 2008)

MA-Caver said:


> Good guess... one expert says :
> 
> 
> Whatever it is, it's just cute. Also Pallid bats that I've seen (very rare sighting at that) have longer and more tapered ears. This guy's ears are more triangular in shape... wouldn't you agree?



Well, I'm no expert, and will gladly defer to those who are. But take a look here, particularly the first image in the upper left... looks like an identical twin of the one in your pics, no?


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## Kacey (Jul 13, 2008)

exile said:


> Well, I'm no expert, and will gladly defer to those who are. But take a look here, http://images.google.com/images?hl=...&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&resnum=1&ct=title



Uh... the second link was okay, but the first one went here - no bats on this site!


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## exile (Jul 13, 2008)

Kacey said:


> Uh... the second link was okay, but the first one went here - no bats on this site!



Yeah, you caught me mid-edit&#8212;right royal screwing-up of the URL link there, that was... I've fixed it now. Three cheers for, and a mighty toast to, the edit feature, eh?

I'm gonna take a look at the Townsend's that MAC's source mentioned and see...


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## Tez3 (Jul 13, 2008)

Bear in mind the girl comes from Norwich, odd people there, they also reckon they have baby elephants wandering the streets. ( It's pronouned "Norrich" btw)
http://www.visitnorwich.co.uk/


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## exile (Jul 13, 2008)

Tez3 said:


> Bear in mind the girl comes from Norwich, odd people there, they also reckon they have baby elephants wandering the streets. ( It's pronouned "Norrich" btw)
> http://www.visitnorwich.co.uk/



The key question, though, is whether they have odd _bats_ in Norwich :lol:. (And yes, we've known about the typically eccentric spelling/pronunciation pairing with Norwich ever since Adrian was a baby and we read him the Mother Goose rhyme about _The Man in the Moon came down too soon/And asked his way to Norwich/He went by the south, and burned his mouth/With supping cold plum porridge. _ Ah, the memories...)

Looking at the Townsend's bat image here, it's kind of hard to tell... he's got pretty triangular ears too... _big_ ones! Bigger looking than the ones in the original pic, I'd say...


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## MA-Caver (Jul 13, 2008)

exile said:


> Looking at the Townsend's bat image here, it's kind of hard to tell... he's got pretty triangular ears too... _big_ ones! Bigger looking than the ones in the original pic, I'd say...


Well Townsend's I've seen up close, and held them (with supervision of a bat rescuer/rehabilitation specialist) and yeah their ears are huge in relative to their body size. Also their facial markings are just plain. Got to see so many of them (caves and mines in Utah) that it'd be hard for me to mistake one for another species. 
I'll keep an eye out on the thread in the other forum and hopefully someone will resolve the mystery.

Hmm... maybe it's a Western Pip.?? Got the right ear shape I think and light coloring?? Unfortunately in the original photo there's nothing really to give it scale because the animal is flying away from the mine-entrance and there's no telling how close it is to the photographer... but it's native to Oregon and the guy took the photo in the southwestern desert area states http://www.dfw.state.or.us/swwd/bats.html.


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## exile (Jul 13, 2008)

Tez3 said:


> Hmm... maybe it's a Western Pip.?? Got the right ear shape I think and light coloring?? Unfortunately in the original photo there's nothing really to give it scale because the animal is flying away from the mine-entrance and there's no telling how close it is to the photographer... but it's native to Oregon and the guy took the photo in the southwestern desert area states http://www.dfw.state.or.us/swwd/bats.html.



I don't know anything about Western Pips&#8212;thanks for the tip! Have tried looking for images... no luck, but this photo of a Townsend's Big Ear (shades of Noddy, eh? :wink1 that I came across while searching makes me think that that probably isn't the right ID for the photo you sent. I mean, look at the size of them suckers, compared to the bat's head size sans ears... probably two to one! Very different from the case of that poor little guy with the hole in his wing...


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## Xue Sheng (Jul 14, 2008)

Not to derail but I am betting she would have noticed if one of these was in her bra


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## exile (Jul 14, 2008)

Xue Sheng said:


> Not to derail but I am betting she would have noticed if one of these was in her bra



:uhyeah:


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## Kacey (Jul 14, 2008)

Xue Sheng said:


> Not to derail but I am betting she would have noticed if one of these was in her bra



I would sincerely hope so!!!!!


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## tshadowchaser (Jul 15, 2008)

I have held off for three pages but I got to say this .
Did you look at the size of those cups?  She could have hid anything in them
Ok sorry for being an old dirty man


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## MA-Caver (Jul 15, 2008)

tshadowchaser said:


> I have held off for three pages but I got to say this .
> Did you look at the size of those cups?  She could have hid anything in them
> Ok sorry for being an old dirty man


I saw the size of those cups... but with her being a teenager I elected to say nothing. Besides I think it's a photographic distortion as he is holding the entire thing close to the camera which distorts the perspective, making things larger than they appear.


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