Chinese Visitors

Last night I had a fantastic educational experience: I met with a group of Chinese visitors to talk about the bats in Bat Cave and my Fulbright research. I was a bit nervous beforehand because I didn’t know what it was going to be like. How big was the group? Did they speak English? Would there be an interpreter if they didn’t? They arrived at the cave at 8:00pm, when the bats usually start coming out. I first met the two group leaders, who were Australians from Zoos SA (South Australia). They were taking the group to various natural sites throughout South Australia. They introduced me to the interpreter, a middle-aged Chinese woman. There were about 15 others in the group, most of whom spoke no English. I began by explaining a little about the bats and what we are doing with the project. It was so weird to have to talk through an interpreter! I talked and then she relayed what I had said. While she was interpreting I had to just stand their awkwardly and smile. Quite an interesting experience! Everyone in the group was very nice and they asked some questions, like what the bats eat and how many there are in the cave. When the first few bats came out some of the group members got skittish, and when the resident possums crawled out of the cave they freaked out and backed up. They thought it was a snake! Once they realized it was a cute, furry possum, they immediately gathered around the fence to take pictures. It reminded me a lot of what I was like when I first got here. Even such a common animal as the Common Brushtail Possum elicits such excitement from newcomers! When the bats started coming out in full force everyone was amazed at how many there were and at how fast they fly. I showed them a recording of a thermal imaging count I had taken previously (I didn’t actually set up the cameras for them because of my knee and crutches) and they found it fascinating how the camera can pick up so many more bats than we can see with the naked eye. They also got to see the resident owl fly out of the cave (it lives in the cave during the day and hunts the bats as they come out in the evening). When they gathered to leave and I packed up, they came right up and helped me carry my equipment without me even asking. The Zoos SA leaders thanked me and the whole group started applauding me! One man came up to me and handed me a cute little stuffed animal panda they had brought from China as a thank-you gift. I was completely taken by surprise and touched by their warmth and kind gestures. It was definitely one of the most fun and rewarding experiences I’ve had talking with a group about bats and my work.

P.S. It’s 11/11/11, a numerical palindrome!

 My thank-you gift