ASHLAND, Ore. (AP) — A winged creature from Oregon was crowned this year’s winner Thursday in an annual bat beauty contest put on by the Bureau of Land Management.
On Halloween, which was also the last day of International Bat Week, a hoary bat with a feisty personality named “Hoary Potter” defeated “Lestat”, the western small-footed bat from Idaho, in the final round of the contest. It also bested a Townsend’s big-eared bat named "Sir Flaps-A-Lot" from Utah, among others.
The victory marks the third year in a row that a bat from Oregon has taken first place in the contest. Last year, “William ShakespEAR,” a female Townsend’s big-eared bat from southern Oregon took the title. In 2022, a canyon bat named “Barbara” also from southern Oregon was declared the winner.
The federal agency has held the competition since 2019 to raise awareness about the animal’s ecological importance. The bats are part of wild populations living on public lands, and are photographed by agency staff. BLM posted the photos on its Facebook and Instagram accounts, and asked people to vote for the cutest one.
Hoary bats are known for swift flight and wrapping themselves in their own tails to mimic leaves and to hide from predators, the agency said. Because of this attribute, it estimated Hoary Potter would be “the perfect candidate for seeker on this year’s Quidditch team,” referring to the game in Harry Potter that is played on flying brooms.
Emma Busk, the BLM wildlife technician who photographed Hoary Potter, said bats play a key role in the environment by eating insects and pollinating flowers and fruits. But they’re increasingly facing the threats of habitat loss, disease and light pollution, and are often misunderstood as scary disease carriers, she said.
“Less than 1% of all bat populations actually carry rabies, and the bat-to-human disease transmission is actually really low,” she said.
Busk said she hopes the event inspires more love for the only flying mammal.
This undated image provided by the Bureau of Land Management shows the bat Hoary Potter. (Emma Busk/Bureau of Land Management via AP)
SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (AP) — Trick-or-treaters in the Northeast who in past years would bundle up under their Bluey or Beetlejuice costumes comfortably roamed neighborhoods in unseasonably mild temperatures Thursday.
New York City hit 81 degrees (27.2 Celsius) on Halloween, with Boston topping out at 78 degrees (25.5 C). Caribou, Maine, hit a high of 75 degrees (23.8 C), well above the Halloween average of 47 degrees (8 C).
Buffalo, New York, saw a record-breaking 78 degrees — a year after light snow fell on Halloween.
In Schenectady, parents walked kids dressed as ninjas, superheroes and princesses down residential streets before the sun went down. The temperature was in the 70s, and people were loving it.
“It’s not a typical Halloween by any means,” Tom Kaczmarek said as he accompanied his 4-year-old daughter, who was dressed as a ghost. “But it’s nice not to have to cover our daughter in a coat, so she can wear her costume fully and proudly.”
Twelve-year-old Emma Abraham said she was a little hot in her Joker costume, but she was going to pull through.
“These temperatures are running on average about 20 degrees warmer than normal,” said Samantha Borisoff, a climatologist at the Northeast Regional Climate Center at Cornell University. She noted that weather can vary widely in October, a transitional month between seasons.
“So every Halloween can be very different,” she said.
This year was a far cry from 2011, when an early Nor’easter just before Halloween dumped heavy, wet snow around New York's Hudson Valley region. In 2012, the New York City area was reeling on Halloween after Superstorm Sandy ravaged the northeastern coastline Oct. 29, causing about $65 billion in damage.
Elsewhere, parts of eastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin were getting their first snow of the season Thursday. The National Weather Service said there was high uncertainty about accumulations because the ground is still warm. Snow melted when it hit the pavement in downtown Minneapolis.
But revelers in the Northeast were enjoying the treat while it lasted. Temperatures were expected to return to normal ranges starting Friday.
Nelson Rose wore a bewigged scary clown mask in the late-day Schenectady sun, but he said he was comfortable as he rolled a double stroller for his grandchildren.
“The end of October and we’re still getting this 70-degree weather,” he said. “I’m not complaining at all.”
Associated Press writer Steve Karnowski contributed from Minneapolis.
A boy dressed in a firefighter costume arrives to watch a Halloween parade, Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Mamaroneck, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
A man carries a child dressed as a king upon arriving to watch a Halloween Parade, Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Mamaroneck, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
Parents attend a Halloween parade compare costumes, Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Mamaroneck, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
Children at Daniel Warren Elementary School walk in a Halloween parade, Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Mamaroneck, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
Children at Daniel Warren Elementary School walk in a Halloween parade, Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Mamaroneck, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
