Bats

[Spike Jones 5 2002]

I woke at Sun rise. The fog is growing.
I spotted about half dozen Mosquito eating bats flying around my yard.
Up until now if I seen one I was lucky.
I watched them slip into the ventilation hole in my garage.
My now project is building bat houses.
About a month ago I spotted one hanging on the cinder block of my foundation.
I was surprised because it was on the sunny side and a hot day.

 

[JettaKnight]

Bats love heat when they sleep. Typically bat houses are painted dark and placed with a southern exposure.

 

[Hoosier Carry]

They do well with Shagbark hickory trees around. Do you have any of those nearby?
We have lots of them in are area and the sky is full of bats at night.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Used to see lots of bats at my house when I was a kid. We'd go out and swing brooms around to get them to swoop down toward us to investigate. Can't remember the last time I saw one now. (Same house)

 

[Spike Jones 5 2002]

Used to see lots of bats at my house when I was a kid. We'd go out and swing brooms around to get them to swoop down toward us to investigate. Can't remember the last time I saw one now. (Same house)

OMG you brought back memories. We use to throw small stones as high as we could. It was fun watching the bats chase them down.

No shagfbarks but a lot of different trees. Mine are all nesting in my garage. I watched them grab onto the cinder block wall and climb into a hole.

 

[bobjones223]

OMG you brought back memories. We use to throw small stones as high as we could. It was fun watching the bats chase them down.

No shagfbarks but a lot of different trees. Mine are all nesting in my garage. I watched them grab onto the cinder block wall and climb into a hole.

"Nesting in my garage" is a double edged sword. I have the bats but the droppings are messy and not good for your health. Also once the colony gets established and become a problem they are hard and costly to get rid of.

I am not sure the best answer for the plyte of the bat. I have nesting boxes but would love to find a winter solution for them that doesn't include my house!

Any ideas on winter nesting boxes?

 

[dung]

They do well with Shagbark hickory trees around. Do you have any of those nearby?
We have lots of them in are area and the sky is full of bats at night.

I didn't know that, but it makes sense. Our property has a ton of shagbark around and we have 5 or 6 bats flying over our yard in the evening most nights.

 

[boosteds13cc]

Ive got plenty of bats around my house. I love watching them swoop around like fighter jets eating all those bugs!

 

[phylodog]

I just put a bat house up on the new place a few days ago. Does anyone know how long it might take for bats to find it and take up residence? It's not a big house and I plan to put a few more larger ones up. I love having lots of bats around.

 

[indyjohn]

I just put a bat house up on the new place a few days ago. Does anyone know how long it might take for bats to find it and take up residence? It's not a big house and I plan to put a few more larger ones up. I love having lots of bats around.

I can't answer your question directly but I'd bet they are likely already around the area but you'd think it may take a season for a pair to find the new place. We have all manner of shagbark hickory around our property. I need to get going on putting houses up!

 

[phylodog]

I don’t think I’ve got any shag barks on my place unfortunately. Hopefully I can draw them in anyway.

 

[indyjohn]

I don’t think I’ve got any shag barks on my place unfortunately. Hopefully I can draw them in anyway.

I think you'll draw them off the field. I bet they come out of the woods and cruise around over the corn.

 

[phylodog]

I hope so

 

[DoggyDaddy]

I just put a bat house up on the new place a few days ago. Does anyone know how long it might take for bats to find it and take up residence? It's not a big house and I plan to put a few more larger ones up. I love having lots of bats around.

You just need a way to let them know it's there... like a signal or something.

 

[CindyE]

I just put a bat house up on the new place a few days ago. Does anyone know how long it might take for bats to find it and take up residence? It's not a big house and I plan to put a few more larger ones up. I love having lots of bats around.

We put one up in a tree in the backyard this Spring. I haven't seen any bats, but I read that it can take several years. I want them for the insect control. A friend of ours told us that it will attract bats to our house and they'll get in the attic, but I've also read just the opposite.

 

[tmschuller]

I would love to get them out of my barn... trying to close up holes and need to make some bat houses. Any thoughts on a trap to catch them as they come out or a one way exit? I want them around just not in the barn. They make a mess=guano

 

[spencer rifle]

I just put a bat house up on the new place a few days ago. Does anyone know how long it might take for bats to find it and take up residence? It's not a big house and I plan to put a few more larger ones up. I love having lots of bats around.

Good luck. From years of experience, you will need it. We have had bat houses up locally in great spots for more than 15 years and still have no bats using them. Some advice:
Smearing bat guano around inside the bat house will encourage them to use it.
They like it HOT - over 100 degrees suits them just fine, especially for nursery colonies,
Up high - 15 to 20'
Near water - the first thing they do in the evening is go for a drink by flying over a pond and scooping up water with their lower jaw.
Facing southeast seems to work best.

 

[mom45]

We had a couple of bats hanging out under the eaves of the house that we just got moved. They were on the outside of the house as there were no holes they could get in, but they were making a lot of scratching noise at night....sounded like a million mice in the ceiling but it was just a couple of bats. We took some metal flashing and tacked it up under the eaves and on the side of the house at the peak where they were sleeping so now they can't grip the house anymore (log home). I see bats swooping all over our back yard and woods on my trail cameras and love having them around, but don't want them pooping down the side of the house, keeping us up at night or finding their way into the house. We've never had bat houses but have found them sleeping in the woodpile and in other areas around the property at times. We seem to have a healthy population of them here eating bugs.