Join the Nightlife: 2024 Recap
October 31, 2024
Thanks to all the Join the Nightlife: Bats and Agriculture attendees who joined us out in the field this year! Guests got hands-on experience with
At Sai Yok National Park on Thailand’s western border with Myanmar (Burma), two park rangers accompanied our team to search for the world’s smallest mammal, the Bumblebee Bat (Craseonycteris thonglongyai).
Running through the park is the famous River Kwai, the location of the WWII movie “The Bridge On the River Kwai” considered one of the greatest movies of all time. In a hired long boat, we went by river in search of limestone caves along its banks, home to the Bumblebee Bat.
We hiked down the famous railroad track and also boated down the river to find bachelor colonies of bats in local caves where we set up the camera equipment, while Daniel Hargreaves and the park rangers netted bats for Merlin to photograph and release.
Some of the bats photographed in the park were Craseonycteris thonglongyai, Megaderma spasma, Hipposideros armiger, and Hipposideros pomona.
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Thanks to all the Join the Nightlife: Bats and Agriculture attendees who joined us out in the field this year! Guests got hands-on experience with
Supporter and friend of MTBC, Australian conservation and animal welfare photojournalist Doug Gimesy, had his images recognized in two categories at the recent Siena International
Fieldwork requires a lot of equipment, but photography requires even more! During our June 2024 photography workshop, we transported over 100 lbs. of equipment —
Within the dim limestone passageways of Caverna Santa Catalina, the air came alive with bats. I stood in awed silence, taking in the rush of
2024 © Merlin Tuttle’s Bat Conservation. All rights reserved.
Madelline Mathis has a degree in environmental studies from Rollins College and a passion for wildlife conservation. She is an outstanding nature photographer who has worked extensively with Merlin and other MTBC staff studying and photographing bats in Mozambique, Cuba, Costa Rica, and Texas. Following college graduation, she was employed as an environmental specialist for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. She subsequently founded the Florida chapter of the International DarkSky Association and currently serves on the board of DarkSky Texas. She also serves on the board of Houston Wilderness and was appointed to the Austin Water Resource Community Planning Task Force.
Michael Lazari Karapetian has over twenty years of investment management experience. He has a degree in business management, is a certified NBA agent, and gained early experience as a money manager for the Bank of America where he established model portfolios for high-net-worth clients. In 2003 he founded Lazari Capital Management, Inc. and Lazari Asset Management, Inc. He is President and CIO of both and manages over a half a billion in assets. In his personal time he champions philanthropic causes. He serves on the board of Moravian College and has a strong affinity for wildlife, both funding and volunteering on behalf of endangered species.