North Carolina Wildlife Commission Says Check Your Home For Bats
No one wants uninvited visitors in their homes. I always say I love animals if it’s an expected encounter, but I don’t want to just happen upon them. I definitely don’t want to share my space unknowingly with one that could have and spread disease. But here in the Carolinas, it’s not particularly uncommon to find bats in your home. And the North Carolina Wildlife Commission is now saying if you have any reason to suspect bats are under your roof now is the time to take action.
North Carolina Bats Pup-Rearing Season
This is because bat “pup-rearing season” begins on May 1st. That just means that the baby bats are about to be born. Bats hibernate and/or go south for the winter so this is the time you’ll start to notice them. It’s recommended you have the bats removed before this date. The pup-rearing season ends July 31st.
“Eviction methods rely on a bat’s ability to fly out of the roost, then measures are taken to prevent reentry. Young bats are initially flightless and are totally dependent on their mothers, so when adult bats are evicted, the young perish because they can’t yet leave the roost or survive on their own. To make matters worse, mother bats may end up in the living space of a building trying to seek alternate ways to get to their pups. By August 1, young bats are mature enough to fly, so eviction methods are safe to resume at that point,” stated Katherine Etchison, wildlife diversity biologist with the Wildlife Commission in a press release.
If you can’t have the bats from your home before rearing season, leave them in their roost until the end of July. If this is the case it is still recommended to reach out to a Wildlife Control Agent. The agent can seal off entryways that lead into your living space which will minimize the chance of human interaction.
Signs Bats May Be In Your Home:
Bat scat, referred to as “guano”, is the most obvious indication. Bats often reside in gable vents, behind a shutter or in other nooks around the outside or inside your home. If you do have them in your home reach out to a licensed Wildlife Control Agent who can safely evict them for you. If a bat enters or you suspect has entered your living space and been around humans, contact your county health department immediately.
Bats will return to the same roost each spring. So it’s important to keep your home sealed to prevent them from returning after an eviction. If you so choose you can provide an alternative roosting space. This can be done by installing bat boxes 12 to 20 feet high. Bat boxes should be in a place with at least seven hours of direct sunlight in the summer.
6 Facts About Bats:
