BATTING PRACTICE AT SQUAM FARM
Lathered in enough DEET to fend off even the sheep out at Squam Farm, I stood, bewildered, staring at the edge of a swampy area at dusk, watching a bat do its jerky aerial dance over the tree tops as it searched for insects to eat.

This week, The Nantucket Independent continues a summer series entitled Night Hikes. This series will help you to discover the island's natural world as the light of day fades into nighttime. At dusk, while some Nantucket critters bed down for the evening, the night shift of birds, reptiles, amphibians, animals, fish and insects emerge, looking for food, love and vocal chord exercise. Stars come out, planets glow and sparkle and as the air cools, a whole new world opens up. Less destination-oriented and much more of a what's-out-there guide, we will also share with you what there is to see, hear and feel out in Nantucket's harbors, saltmarshes and ponds.

I just saw it for about 30 seconds before a woodcock skittered by, maybe alarming the bat, or the bat went on to a thicker swarm of mosquitoes - but, I saw a bat.

Big deal, right? Bats are always found in the vicinity of barns because they like to roost in the rafters during the day, and the barn at Squam Farm sure look like an excellent bat roost. Plus, there are all the trees in the swamp and around the fields with hollow sections to hang upside down in.

PETER B. BRACE/The Independent Twilight at Squam Farm brings out woodcocks, fireflies and the occasional aerial dance of bats.

Imagine my bewilderment, however, because two learned island naturalists with more degrees than I have in biology - which is none - told me I would be hard pressed to find any bats on the island, although both admitted that they don't spend much time walking around in the early evening looking for these much maligned flying mice.

Which type of bats I saw, however, may require my degreed friends' knowledge. From the look of them, they were small; about four or five inches long and all dark brown or black. Three species - silver-haired, hoary and red bats - are said to populate Nantucket in sparse numbers, but I couldn't see the ones I saw well enough or long enough for proper identification.

No matter. I was out there to experience this part of the island without sunlight, although you'll need the fading rays of the day to discern the bats from woodcocks and other silhouetted flying creatures against the darkening sky. After seeing the bats and feeling proud of myself that I had found what others could not, fireflies started to appear; shortly after that, stars in the sky and a thick crescent moon, which is good when one walks through a forest sans flashlight.

This hike is one that I profiled in my Exploring Nantucket series that ran in The Nantucket Independent from May 2005 through the fall of 2006. It is a loop through the Squam Farm property owned by the Nantucket Conservation Foundation and is an easy walk along wide, mown trails, so it's tough to get lost if you follow the path.

As with the introductory walk for Nantucket Night Hikes, when I walked out into the Windswept Cranberry Bog and into the moors, go out to Squam Farm before the sun sets so you can get your bearings and enjoy the sun right after it sets. This is a transitional time for wildlife, with some that bed down for the night finding safe places to rest and others that spend the night foraging for food and companionship emerging from their lairs.

It is the best time that I have found to look for bats because there is enough remaining light to see them, not that I'm a bat expert by any stretch of the imagination, but when I've been out walking at that time, I have seen a fair number of them.

And though I'm not confining all the bats on the island to this part of the Quidnet-Wauwinet area, that's where you should start your search if you want to see bats, woodcocks, sheep and beautiful moonlight. Get out to Quidnet Road and take the first left you come to, or take the last right before the Polpis Road if you're traveling from Quidnet. Follow the dirt road up a rise, ignoring all turns until you come to a parking area surrounded by splitrail fencing.

From the parking area, go right and walk straight, past the right turn that leads to Nantucket Conservation Foundation employee housing. The trail runs down into a swampy area and eventually opens up to meadow on its right. When it does, take the turn into this field. The loop begins here and if you remain on this path and don't take any turns, it's easy to find your way back.

The path skirts several fields, runs past the Foundation's farm property where it is experimenting with sheep to see what sorts of invasive plant species they will eat, then down along the swampy areas of the property and out into open fields again. Along this route, if you look hard enough, the bats are there to be seen in the early night sky.

Bug spray is a must for this night hike if you think you're going to be standing still scanning the skies for bats, so find the repellent formula you feel most comfortable to be drenched in. Naturally, you can always wear long pants, long sleeves and a hat.

Just go and walk at night out there. It's an enchanting place during daylight hours, but at night, well, you'll

see or hear. I