Forget Snakes on a Plane... Passengers in a flap as BAT forces Delta flight to return to airport

By MIKE O'BRIEN



Winging it: The trapped bat makes the first of its four trips up the cabin aisle



Children crying constantly, oversized people who snore loudly... the list of potential nuisances on a plane is almost endless.



But short of a serious terror alert, a bat flapping wildly around your head when you're in mid-air has to top them all.



A Delta flight from Madison, Wisconsin, to Atlanta, Georgia, had to be rerouted back to Madison on Friday when a bat caused chaos in the cabin.





So close, but so far: At this point the bat flies near the bathroom door before turning around and flying up the aisle again





An unidentified passenger took video of the bat on his cell phone and posted it to CNN's iReport, the news network's forum for members of the public to publish their own news.



He described how he was asleep when a 'flying animal' that he believes was a bat started moving through the cabin.



He said: 'I woke up to a small scream and then I saw the bat fly over my head.

'I grabbed my phone to get some video as my friends would never believe this.





Flying menace: Passengers scream as the bat flies close to their heads



Then, as if by magic, it flies straight into the bathroom, upon which one passenger quickly closes the door to the collective sighs of relief and a few thumbs up.



Jarek Beem, a spokesperson for Delta Connections partner Atlantic Southeast Airlines, confirmed that flight 5121 did in fact return to Madison after a 'flying animal' was reported in the cabin.



The plane was searched fully before flying out again.



Mr Beem said: 'We were not able to confirm if it was a bird or a bat.



'Bottom line is the flight did return to Madison so the aircraft could be searched and it was after that search that it was able to return to Atlanta.'







source: dailymail

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Midnight feast: Incredibly patient photographer uses own hunter's instinct to capture bat swooping down on a scorpion

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Hunting sting: This fantastic photo captures the very moment the hungry bat swoops in to capture this scorpion


As it majestically swoops down to capture its scorpion prey this incredible picture shows the sheer power and stealth of this bloodthirsty bat.

Celebrated U.S. photographer Tom Whetten, 64, spends hours each night working in his 'studio in the wild' patiently waiting for the perfect moment to capture these creatures of darkness.

Using skills he has picked up while hunting other animals he painstakingly plans each of his shots to get the perfect wildlife picture.

Mr Whetten has developed his own stealthy system using four flashes and a laser beam, which triggers a camera and flash guns when broken by one of the bats.

Set up at his home, he has produced some amazing results, showing bats swooping at its prey, or simply taking a dip or drink in a pond surrounded by his equipment.

He said: 'I'm a hunter so I use the same skills I learned from that - it's exactly the same thing.


Scientific: Celebrated wildlife photographer Tom Whetten uses several flashes and a laser beam to capture the beautiful bat shots


'The skills, the understanding what wildlife does - I take time to learn about what they are doing and what they might do next before I start trying to take my pictures.

'I was hunting for 25 years. I just started walking around as a young kid studying their movement which then went to the next level when I was hunting.

'All I have done is transfer the knowledge of wildlife it taught me into my photography.

'When I got my first camera as a middle-aged guy I decided to give up hunting and became a full time photographer - it was a pretty seamless transition.'

Tom Whetten is from the U.S. city of Tucson, Arizona, and uses his lengthy research and experience to help plan his set-up in the wild.


Graceful: The bat, photographed in the heart of the Arizona desert, is captured using the hunting instincts of the photographer


He added: 'For these shots it can take several nights of work to get the ones I want.

'I will get 10 shots a night maybe, but because I pre-focus the camera if the bats don't fly through the trigger at the right angle the shot is out of focus.

'I have just a thin white line beam so if one flies through it a little too high then it isn't sharp.

'I might get a good picture but not a great picture, and a great picture is what I strive for.


Thirsty work: The bat washes down his scorpion dinner with a drink of water from this pond


'Part of my work is to create a mini studio out in the wild with four flashes and a photo trap triggering device to get it at the right moment.

'These kinds of pictures cannot be staged or corrected afterwards so it's a long, hard process, but when you get home and you realise you nailed the shot it's amazing.'

He now takes groups of amateur photographers on tours everywhere from his local haunts all the way to Africa.

He said: 'If I can pass on some of the unique skills I learned over the years to help them take brilliant pictures it's just as good a feeling as getting a great picture myself.'


source: dailymail

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Strewth, this weather's totally batty! It's not only the humans who have lost their homes in the Australian floods

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Baby bats at the Bat Clinic in Advancetown, which has helped at least 130 baby bats after the wet weather


Torrential rain has brought chaos to Australia, and not just to the humans who live there.

Australian Bat Clinic and Wildlife Trauma Centre director Trish Wimberley and her carers have helped save 130 orphaned bats on the Gold Coast in past weeks.

They saved 350 young bats during the 2008 storm season but this year think there's more going on than just wild weather.


Worker Wendy Wimberley lovingly tends to baby bats at the Bat Clinic, where patient numbers are up this year


Carers have visited several bat 'camps' on the coast in recent weeks to find four-week-old babies on the ground covered in maggots and fly eggs.

Trish said: 'They're coming down to feed on the ground. That makes them vulnerable. It's not a natural occurrence and shows there is trouble in the environment.

'Bats are a barometer to what is going on in the environment. They're our canaries down the coal mine'.

The surviving youngsters will be bottle fed and kept either hanging on clothes lines or in special intensive care units until they are ready to fly again in about four weeks.


The winged mammals are bottle fed, wrapped up and hung on clotheslines until they are well enough to be released


source: dailymail

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Celebs take cover! Mysterious influx of deadly rabid bats puts Hollywood on health alert

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER


Invasion: A brown bat (file photo). LA health officials are warning of a mysterious increase in rabid bats in the area


As if the threat of earthquakes, wildfires, mudslides and sightings of make-up free celebrities wasn't enough to worry Los Angeles residents.

Now public health officials are warning of an unusually high number of rabid bats.
According to the Department of Public Health, 21 bats with rabies have been found in Los Angeles County this year, more than double the average number of 10.

The county's public health director, Jonathan Fielding, said the reason for the increase is unclear.

'Regardless, it is important that all county residents understand the potential dangers posed to themselves and their pets, as most of these rabid bats have been found in and around homes,' he said.

He urged parents to make sure their children know to leave bats and other wildlife alone, and to keep pets away from wildlife.

Rabies is a serious viral illness that affects the central nervous system and could cause brain disease and death.

County officials said one resident who was trying to nurse a sick bat back to health was bitten and had to be treated for rabies.

Fielding said two dogs and a cat were recently found playing with live, rabid bats.

If the pets had not been up to date on their rabies vaccinations, their owners may have been forced to euthanize them.


source: dailymail >

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