Tracking the Impacts of WNS at Wisconsin’s Stonefield Historic Site
February 19, 2025
“Just like the old days, eh Heather?” Kent softly clicks his tally counter as he sits in his folding chair on the other side of
Filming the The Secret World of Bats took Merlin to 5 continents and 9 countries in one year. That year was 1989, when he returned to Thailand for the second time. With a film crew headed by Dieter Plage, they told the story of guano mining at Khao Chong Pran and Rakang Caves. The rigorous travel schedule and time zone changes nearly killed Merlin.
This is what Wikipedia says about Dieter Plage who accompanied Merlin on the project and died shortly thereafter:
“Dieter was lead cameraman on a major Survival series shot in the Galapagos Islands in the 1980s and then tackled probably his most challenging assignment to shoot The Secret World of Bats. Filmed on five continents, the programme was the supreme test of Plage’s considerable camera skills. Working with one of the world’s leading bat experts, Merlin Tuttle, he explored in detail the amazing behaviour of bats and their vital role in the planet’s ecology.[67] He had just returned to Sumatra to update the story of the orangutans’ battle for survival when he met his death while filming above the forest canopy.”
Now on his third trip to Thailand, Merlin wanted to see how the bats were doing in these caves. He also wanted to find some of the people he interviewed on previous trips to see how they’re doing. He insisted we stop at local businesses and inquire of these men.
Well, his persistence paid off. We found the restaurant owner who sold fried bat and the guano miner. For those stories, read the blogs: “Bat Off the Menu” and “A Guano Miner’s Daughter,” coming up.
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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.