This is a composite of two shots taken the same night.

One to expose the moon and the other to capture the bats.



The bats are exiting the entrance to the Old Tunnel WMA which many years ago was a railroad tunnel cut through the hill.

When the railroad was disbanned, the bats came to nest and make it their home.

The State of Texas purchased the area to assist in protecting the bat population. South Texas has over 40 millions bats.

The bats in this nesting area consume over 13 tons of crop insects each night.

Without the bats and their efforts, several Texas crops would soon be destroyed by insects. Now is the time to visit while the bats are exiting early and the population is over 3 million.

More photos of the Old Tunnel can be viewed at:

http://www.pbase.com/richo/old_tunnel/