Published: September 27, 2008 06:39 pm         

Bats more a nuisance than a threat, expert says

As temperatures fall, some of nature’s best bug catchers will be looking for a place to bed down for the winter.

If the ridge vents and caps on your home are not properly designed, they could allow just enough space for a mama bat to move in and raise a family.

Attics are the ultimate hang-outs for bats because they provide the high temperatures and undisturbed environments that bats need for resting, giving birth and rearing young. Baby bats are born in late spring and become mobile and interested in braving the great outdoors around the end of summer. The young bats can sometimes take a wrong turn and end up flying into the living areas of your home

Believe it or not, no one hates a bat-human encounter more than the bat, one expert said.

“These incidents often occur this time of year when young and newly weaned bats get lost trying to make their way out of an attic for the first time to join the rest of their colony in nocturnal foraging for insects,” said John Griffin, director of The Humane Society of the United States Humane Wildlife Services.

Grossly misrepresented by movies and television, bats are beneficial to the environment and are not savage, blood-sucking attackers, Griffin said.

“Believe me, that bat is far more afraid of the human. It’s major goal is going to be to get away from you and find a place to hide until it feels safe again,” he said.

When a bat finds its way into human space, a homeowner needs to confront two issues, Griffin said, humane removal of the bat and finding and closing its access to the inside of the house.

Bats can bite, so it’s best to grab some thick gloves before attempting to remove one from your home, Griffin said.

“Never try to handle a bat with your bare hands or with cotton gloves. Also you don’t want to come in contact with the bat if you are trying to use some type of container to capture the bat,” he said.

Should you be bitten by a bat, capture it and take it to your local health department to be tested for rabies. If anyone was intoxicated or sleeping in a room where you found a bat, have the bat tested. The person could have been bitten without knowing it.

Finding and getting rid of a bat colony might best be left to professionals such as Mark Dotson, chief executive officer with All Animal Control Franchise Operations at Flat Top,

“Bats can enter an opening as small as a nickel. The first thing we do is a 62-point inspection of the home to determine where the bats are entering. The next phase is to evict the bats. Depending on the time of year and whether young are present, there are restrictions on when we are able to evict the bats. Generally from May to August if a maternal colony is present, we must wait until at least August to begin the eviction process,” Dotson said.

After the removal phase, professionals seal up of the entire home to prevent future infestations.

“The next phase would be to provide guano (bat droppings) removal from all accessible areas of the home such as the attic or soffits. Odor control, removal of contaminated insulation and installing new installation is completed as well,” Dotson said.

However, there may be one last thing that needs to be done.

“Occasionally there will be bat bugs found in the home. These bugs are very similar to a bed bug and will bite you just as they can. These bugs have been living on the host bat. When the bats leave, bat bugs may be left behind and enter the living area of the home. We will recommend a qualified pest control company to treat the bat bugs if they are present,” Dotson said.

E-mail: bdavis@register-herald.com