What's eating you?

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s the unofficial state bird...the mosquito! There are very few animals on Earth that evoke such a feeling of misery like the mosquito. And, if you have ever visited Camp Foley I am sure you have had the pleasure of being woken up in the the middle of the night to itch one of those mosquito bites, which almost always end up in the most awkward place possible. Mosquitos are a natural, and healthy part of our environment here at Foley, and even though you might not stop disliking them, my hope is that you will have a new-found understanding of them.

Female Mosquito feeding.

Mosquito is Spanish for “little fly” and there are over 3,500 species in the world with about 50 of those species living in Minnesota. Mosquitos begin their lives in water, about 10 days, as larvae. They feed on organic matter that lives in stagnant water and breathe oxygen through little tubes called siphons, which look a lot like a snorkel! Over the next 10 days they will eat and grow into an adult mosquito and fly away. If you think that they grow up fast, it is because the average mosquito only lives about 6-8 weeks.

During the course of their short lives, they spend their time doing two things....eating and laying eggs! As far as eating goes, only female mosquitos eat blood. That is right ya’ll, females suck blood from people and animals, while male mosquitos feed off of plant nectar. Human skin produces over 300 chemical odors that smell like dinner to the mosquito. They can also detect body heat. So, really it is almost impossible to keep a mosquito from finding you!

So even though you may think mosquitos are very annoying creatures, they do play a role in our ecosystem! They are a reliable source of food for thousands of animals including bats, birds, frogs and fish. So, the next time you head outside, grab that mosquito repellent and don’t let the mosquitos take a bite outta you!

- Carrie Stageman, Assistant Director

Meet the Bats!

Have you ever taken a walk through Camp Foley and wondered what those little brown boxes were fixated onto some of the poles and trees? Well friends, those are homes for some of our year-round campers....the bats!

Little Brown Myotis.

Now, don’t get creeped out and scared like many people do when they hear the word "bat". Bats, like snakes, are very misunderstood creatures and serve as a great resource in keeping our ecosystem at Foley healthy! Many people fear bats because of stories and movies about tropical bats that suck blood and swoop and bite humans, but I can assure you, they don’t live in Minnesota.

The bats living in Minnesota are very small, weighing in at about 1 ounce. The most common bat found is called Little Brown Myotis. Together with the Northern Myotis, they hibernate in caves and mines during the winter and then find caves, building and hollow trees to roost in during the summer months. And, just like in movies, bats hang upside down!Bats are beneficial and gentle creatures, but have terrible eyesight! While many people claim to have been swooped at by a bat, they are more than likely in the way of bat catching his dinner! Bats can occasionally look like an erratic fliers, but that’s what it looks like when you chase insects through the air. Because the eyesight of a bat is so bad, they give off supersonic cries that bounce off objects in the path of the bat. Those echos guide bats toward prey or away from obstacles. Another reason to appreciate the bats in Minnesota is their preferred insect to eat...the mosquito!

Northern Myotis.

So the next time you are watching a cheesy horror flick and a scary looking bat comes into the scene, remember, he isn’t trying to look scary, he is just trying to find his dinner with his eyes closed!


- Carrie Stageman, Assistant Director