Post by L Roebuck on Jul 27, 2006 7:47:18 GMT -5
Westie woman donates land for bats
By Ian Murphy/ Correspondent
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Clydia Davenport was looking to donate her 65 acres of land near the Ozark National Forest in Arkansas. The land is steep, craggy, has no road access and is almost completely unusable by humans. Little did she know that her 65 acres are used as a home to one of the most endangered bats on Earth: the Ozark big-eared bat.
Davenport, 56, who lives in West Roxbury, had never seen or set foot on the land. She had read, however, that several local politicians wanted to dam up nearby Lee Creek, creating a man-made lake and destroying the local habitat. Politicians had raised $4 million to dispatch the Army Corps of Engineers to study the land. Davenport, who spent years as a lawyer trying to defend wetlands, wanted nothing to do with that plan, even though it would make her now-useless land into lake-front property.
"I don’t have the resources to fight $4 million and the Army Corps of Engineers," said Davenport, "but the Nature Conservancy does."
Davenport called the Nature Conservancy, an international organization that has protected more than 117 million acres worldwide, according to its Web site. The organization wanted a better look at the land before it agreed to receive it, so they dispatched Tim Snell from their Arkansas branch to look at the land. What he found was the perfect habitat for the Ozark big-eared bat, a species with only about 2,000 bats remaining.
"As far as we can tell, it has never been logged or developed," said Snell. "It’s virtually in a natural condition. The property itself is perfect for the bats."
According to Snell, the land is made mostly of thick timber and cracked-rock bluffs which provide hiding places for the bats to hide, eat and rest. The bats live in a cave known as Devil’s Den, just north of the property in the Ozark National Forest. They use close-by Lee Creek like a highway to reach the property. Snell knew the bats were using the property to forage for food because of a peculiar feeding habit the bats have.
"They catch a moth, and fly to a feeding roost," said Snell. "Then they cut off the wings and eat the soft body."
When Snell found piles of wings from forest moths, he knew the bats were using Davenport’s property to feed.
Full Article: www2.townonline.com/roslindale/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=542562
By Ian Murphy/ Correspondent
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Clydia Davenport was looking to donate her 65 acres of land near the Ozark National Forest in Arkansas. The land is steep, craggy, has no road access and is almost completely unusable by humans. Little did she know that her 65 acres are used as a home to one of the most endangered bats on Earth: the Ozark big-eared bat.
Davenport, 56, who lives in West Roxbury, had never seen or set foot on the land. She had read, however, that several local politicians wanted to dam up nearby Lee Creek, creating a man-made lake and destroying the local habitat. Politicians had raised $4 million to dispatch the Army Corps of Engineers to study the land. Davenport, who spent years as a lawyer trying to defend wetlands, wanted nothing to do with that plan, even though it would make her now-useless land into lake-front property.
"I don’t have the resources to fight $4 million and the Army Corps of Engineers," said Davenport, "but the Nature Conservancy does."
Davenport called the Nature Conservancy, an international organization that has protected more than 117 million acres worldwide, according to its Web site. The organization wanted a better look at the land before it agreed to receive it, so they dispatched Tim Snell from their Arkansas branch to look at the land. What he found was the perfect habitat for the Ozark big-eared bat, a species with only about 2,000 bats remaining.
"As far as we can tell, it has never been logged or developed," said Snell. "It’s virtually in a natural condition. The property itself is perfect for the bats."
According to Snell, the land is made mostly of thick timber and cracked-rock bluffs which provide hiding places for the bats to hide, eat and rest. The bats live in a cave known as Devil’s Den, just north of the property in the Ozark National Forest. They use close-by Lee Creek like a highway to reach the property. Snell knew the bats were using the property to forage for food because of a peculiar feeding habit the bats have.
"They catch a moth, and fly to a feeding roost," said Snell. "Then they cut off the wings and eat the soft body."
When Snell found piles of wings from forest moths, he knew the bats were using Davenport’s property to feed.
Full Article: www2.townonline.com/roslindale/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=542562