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BATS AND BOBS<br />
PETS OF LEWES<br />
Monty, about 15, Royal Python<br />
Monty was found in Preston Park and rehomed<br />
from Brighton RSPCA. He is a friendly, docile<br />
and generally upbeat chap, even when he’s<br />
watching Newsnight. Like many Newsnight regulars,<br />
he eats small defrosted rats.<br />
Loves: Beasts of burden, Spartacus, baby’s feet,<br />
the moon.<br />
Hates: Protractors, protracted waits, projectors,<br />
sales projections, the word ‘moist’.<br />
Did you know: Pythons and boa constrictors<br />
have tiny hind leg bones buried in the<br />
muscles near their tails. These vestigial legs are<br />
evidence that snakes descended from lizards;<br />
and therefore proof of the existence of David Attenborough. No two of these pythons are alike – like<br />
a fingerprint, they all have their own unique markings. Generally known as ‘Ball Pythons’, due to a<br />
defence response which sees them rapidly rolling up in the face of danger, they are also referred to as<br />
‘Royal Pythons’ because, before Ratners, ancient royalty wore them as jewellery. @dogsoflewes<br />
WHAT TO DO IF YOU FIND AN INJURED BAT<br />
Now that summer is almost in full swing, our native,<br />
insect-gobbling bats are busy having new families. Bats<br />
are at risk – both from cats, and from cars – and it’s not<br />
uncommon to find an injured one – so Kim Dawson of the<br />
Sussex Bat Group wrote to us. So, what should you do if<br />
you find one?<br />
Here are some tips from the Bat Conservation Trust:<br />
Contain the bat by gently covering with a cloth/tea towel<br />
and carefully scoop it up and place it in a cardboard box<br />
with the tea towel – old shoe boxes are excellent. (Don’t touch the bat with bare hands.)<br />
Be sure to have holes punched in the lid of the box.<br />
Put in a small, shallow container (milk bottle tops are perfect) with a few drops of water (not enough<br />
for the bat to drown in). Top up regularly.<br />
Keep the bat indoors, somewhere quiet and dark.<br />
Most importantly, call the National Bat Helpline on 0345 1300 228 or look up your nearest Sussex<br />
Bat Group rescue / carer sussexbatgroup.org.uk/batrescue for further advice as soon as possible.<br />
Alice Saunders<br />
bats.org.uk/advice/help-with-injured-grounded-bat/how-to-contain-a-bat<br />
sussexbatgroup.org.uk<br />
Photo by Benjamin Youd<br />
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