• Visit
  • Cistern
  • Events & Tours
  • Support
  • Donate
  • Plans & Programs
  • About Us
  • Public Art
  • Rentals & Permits
  • Calendar
Menu
donate trail map
Buffalo Bayou Partnership
  • Visit
    • Buffalo Bayou Park
    • Cistern
    • Allen’s Landing
    • Buffalo Bend Nature Park
    • Public Art along Buffalo Bayou
    • Trail Closures
  • Events & Tours
    • Calendar
    • Cistern Tours
    • Boat Tours
    • Walking Tours
    • Programación en Español
    • Breakfast on Buffalo Bayou
    • NIGHT LIGHT 2023
  • Rentals & Permits
    • Sunset Coffee Building
    • The Water Works in Buffalo Bayou Park
    • Eleanor Tinsley Park
    • Barbara Fish Daniel Picnic Pavilion
    • Permits
  • Support
    • Join as a Member
    • Become a BBP Patron
    • Volunteer with Buffalo Bayou Partnership
    • Donate
    • The Currents
    • Buffalo Bayou Boutique
  • Plans & Programs
    • Buffalo Bayou East
    • “Deeper Dive” Virtual Presentation Series
    • Waterway Clean Up
  • About Us
  • News
    • Press
    • Newsletters

News

Find the latest news about Buffalo Bayou Partnership and all the doings along Buffalo Bayou.

Jul 24

Waugh Bridge Bat Colony Q&A with Wildlife Biologist Diana Foss

Questions answered by Diana Foss, Wildlife Biologist for the Urban Wildlife Technical Guidance Program at Texas Parks & Wildlife Department

Question: Does Buffalo Bayou use a researcher or research firm to quantify the bat colony and birth seasons?

Answer:   I have been researching and managing the Waugh Bat colony since 2003, working with staff from the City of Houston Parks and Rec Dept. and then Buffalo Bayou Partnership when they began managing Buffalo Bayou Park.

I work with a very dedicated and skilled group of trained volunteers, The Houston Area Bat Team, to continue that bat management and research.  Our team has several partners – Buffalo Bayou Partnership, Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept, Bat Conservation International, The Houston Zoo, Houston Parks Board, and Texas Master Naturalist Program (3 chapters).

Early on in 2005, we began conducting crevice counts (estimates of the number of bats residing in the crevice space).  Pre-Harvey, that number was 300,000 bats.  Because the City of Houston was planning to promote the bat-watching opportunities at Waugh, we wanted to learn everything we could about this bat colony, including bat behavior, seasonal changes, and nightly emergence behavior, to make sure we didn’t impact the bats with our public viewing efforts.  During our research, we observed pups (baby bats) in the bridge crevices, so we dedicated considerable time and effort to document seasonal bat activities and timelines.  For example, the pups are born at Waugh starting the end of May through June.  Each female Mexican free-tailed bat gives birth to just one pup per year – all during this time. The oldest pups begin practice flying during the first week in July.  All of the pups are flying by the end of August.

 

Question: Is the colony expected to return to more than 300,000 bats? Do you think this will happen in 2018?

Answer: I have been amazed by how quickly the bats have returned to Waugh bridge after Harvey’s impacts.  In talking to residents who live near Waugh bridge, and listening to what they observed during Harvey, I believe more bats managed to escape the flooding than we originally thought.  The population now, with some of the pups flying, is 200,000 or more.  So it won’t take much time for the population to reach pre-Harvey numbers.  The emergences this month have been really spectacular.  By summer 2019, I predict the population at Waugh will be back to pre-Harvey estimates…as long as we do not experience another Harvey in the meantime.

 

Question: What is it about Waugh Bridge that attracts so many bats?

Answer: The Mexican free-tailed bats choose Waugh bridge due to its structure, location, and warmth.  The bridge beams underneath are installed one next to the other, with narrow crevices in between.  The crevices are where the bats roost, hanging by their toes from the concrete crevice sides.  The concrete holds warmth.  When the pups are born, they are hairless – just tiny pink babies, like a human baby.  They rely on body heat AND the concrete heat to keep them warm until they can grow fur.  The bridge is located over water.  The water cools the air in the summer, retains heat in the winter, and provides water and insects for the bats.  [These bats eat an estimated 3 tons of insects each night.]  Houston’s bayous are beautiful and full of life – for all kinds of wildlife, both large and small.

 

A few other interesting bits of information:

Because Houston and Waugh bridge stay somewhat warm in the winter, there is a population of Mexican free-tailed bats that live in Waugh through the winter.  We don’t know if the ‘winter’ bats are the same individuals as the ‘summer’ bats.  Each bat eats enormous amounts of insects and stores fat all through the spring and summer.  When the temperatures get too cold, below 50 degrees F, the bats remain up in the smallest crevices and live off their stored body fat.  But if we get warm weeks in winter, with insect activity, then the bats emerge and fly.  So Waugh bridge is a year-round bat-watching opportunity, depending on the winter temperatures.

Waugh bridge bat colony attracts visitors from all over the world.  The Houston Area Bat Team gives Friday Night “Bat Chats” down at Waugh Bridge 30 minutes before sunset on Friday nights (starting first Friday in March through last Friday in October).   The bat emergence usually begins around sunset.  We usually gather at the southeast corner of Waugh Drive @ Allen Parkway.  There is a bat viewing platform there.

 

Watch the Waugh Bridge Bat Colony emerge every evening, all year round, 15-30 minutes before sunset.

Tags: bats, bats in houston, Buffalo Bayou, buffalo bayou bats, Buffalo Bayou Park, Buffalo Bayou Partnership, houston bats, Houston Events, Houston landmarks, Hurricane Harvey, mexican free tailed bats, waugh bridge bat colony

For press inquiries, email Karen Farber, BBP VP of External Affairs, or call 713.752.0314 ext. 353.

News Coverage

  • The Bats and Boats are Back at Houston's Waugh Drive Bridge Houston Chronicle, March 15, 2023
  • The Coolest Houston Playgrounds Every Parent Should Know About Chron.com, March 13, 2023
  • Buffalo Bayou Regatta, St. Patricks Day Parade, top family fun picks Houston Chronicle, March 9. 2023
  • Texas' Largest Canoe and Kayak Race and Regatta Paddles Back to Buffalo Bayou with Whole-new Route Culture Map, March 7, 2023
  • Houston parks hosting free "Jazzy Sundays" concerts from March through May Houston Public Media, March 3, 2023
  • HIDDEN GEM: Lost Lake KHOU 11, February 7, 2023
  • 15 Major Developments Headed for Houston in 2023 and Beyond Houston Chronicle, January 24, 2023
  • Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern Offers Inspiration and Reflection Beneath Houston Texas Highways Magazine, January 24, 2023
  • 36 Hours in Houston: Things to Do and See The New York Times, January 19, 2023
  • 11 Things You Must Do at Houston's Buffalo Bayou Park Chron.com, January 14, 2023
more

Press Releases

  • NIGHT LIGHT Returns to Buffalo Bayou East March 8, 2023
  • Three Houston Parks Team Up to Bring Back Jazzy Sundays in the Parks January 31, 2023
  • Buffalo Bayou Partnership Announces Kinder Foundation’s $100M Catalyst Gift to Accelerate Buffalo Bayou East Master Plan September 26, 2022
  • Buffalo Bayou Partnership Unveils New Cleanup Boat August 3, 2022
  • East Downtown Trail Opens to the Public June 14, 2022
  • Light Up the Night Along Buffalo Bayou East March 15, 2022
  • Buffalo Bayou Partnership’s Time No Longer Wins International Art Award September 22, 2021
  • Three Houston Parks Team Up to Celebrate the Legacy of Jazz in Houston with Free Concerts and a Series Spectacular Featuring Mavis Staples August 6, 2021
  • Houston Endowment Awards Buffalo Bayou Partnership $10M Grant December 9, 2020
  • Immersive Installation by Anri Sala in the Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern November 23, 2020
more

Monthly Newsletters

  • Buffalo Bayou eNewsletter - February 2023 February 2, 2023
  • Buffalo Bayou eNewsletter - January 2023 January 12, 2023
  • Buffalo Bayou eNewsletter - December 2022 December 1, 2022
  • Buffalo Bayou eNewsletter - November 2022 November 4, 2022
  • Buffalo Bayou eNewsletter - October 2022 October 6, 2022
  • Buffalo Bayou eNewsletter - September 2022 August 31, 2022
  • Buffalo Bayou eNewsletter - August 2022 August 4, 2022
  • Buffalo Bayou eNewsletter - July 2022 July 1, 2022
  • Buffalo Bayou eNewsletter - June 2022 June 2, 2022
  • Buffalo Bayou eNewsletter - May 2022 May 4, 2022
more

Banking on Buffalo Bayou

  • Banking on Buffalo Bayou - Summer 2021 June 2021
  • Banking on Buffalo Bayou - Winter 2020 January 2020
  • Banking on Buffalo Bayou - Spring 2019 May 2019
  • Banking on Buffalo Bayou - Winter 2019 January 2019
  • Banking on Buffalo Bayou - Summer 2018 July 2018
  • Banking on Buffalo Bayou - Summer 2017 August 2017
  • Banking on Buffalo Bayou - Spring 2017 March 2017
  • Banking on Buffalo Bayou - Winter 2016 December 2016
  • Banking on Buffalo Bayou - Summer 2016 July 2016
  • Banking on Buffalo Bayou - Spring 2016 March 2016
more

Categories

  • Art
  • Awards
  • Behind the Scenes
  • Board Members
  • Buffalo Bayou Park
  • Construction
  • East Sector
  • Español
  • Johnny Steele Dog Park
  • KBR Kids Day
  • Other Nations: A Naturalist's Blog
  • Press Releases
  • Staff
  • Uncategorized
  • Updates

Archives

Calendar

April 2023
M T W T F S S
« Mar    
 12
3456789
10111213141516
17181920212223
24252627282930

Get Involved

There are plenty of ways to get involved with keeping our parks and trails growing and the bayou flowing! Check out our Volunteer Opportunities or become a Buffalo Bayou Partnership Member today.

Membership Volunteer

Stay Connected

Buffalo Bayou Boutique

Looking for a unique gift? Shop our Buffalo Bayou Boutique!
Shop Now
  • Home
  • Visit
  • Support
  • Plans & Programs
  • About Us
  • News

1019 Commerce Street, Suite 200
Houston, TX 77002

t : 713.752.0314    f : 713.223.3500
info@buffalobayou.org

© 2023 Buffalo Bayou Partnership.
website by CORE Design Studio. Log in

Back to Top Events & Tours