If you have ever stepped outside on a summer night you may have seen the swipe of a dark winged creature. This is not uncommon as Wisconsin is home to 8 different species of bats. Jennifer Redell, a cave and mine specialist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, says not to be afraid of these helpful mammals.
Types Of Bats
“The bats are grouped based on how they spend the winter months,” explains Redell. “The tree bats are the Hoary bats, Silver Haired bats, Evening bats, and the Eastern Red bats. They are migratory and during the winter they travel further south to warmer weather to spend their winter months. We also have 4 cave bats which include, Big Brown bats, Little Brown bats, Tri-colored bats, and Northern Long-eared bats. These species rely on hibernating in caves and mines in the winter.”
Redell explains that the Little Brown bat used to be the most common bat in the state, but due to the white nose syndrome their numbers have decreased dramatically. The disease has wiped out nearly 90% of the Little Brown bat population in the state. This has led to the Hoary bat and the Big Brown bat to be the most common in the state.
White Nose Syndrome
The white nose syndrome is a fungal infection that affects mostly cave bats. This is because the fungal spores live in the caves. The disease originated in Europe and Asia, and has since made its way to North America. As the bats work towards the caves in the fall they are engaged in lots of activity ranging from finding food to mating. Doing this transfers the disease from site to site. Caves are cool and damp, which provides the perfect environment for mold to grow. The fungus grows on the bat’s bodies, growing in their living skin tissue. The fungus causes lesions and tears in their skin, which causes them to wake up every few days during their hibernation. Doing this causes them to burn through their fat reserve meant to last them all winter. This causes them to either starve to death due to lack of food or they leave the cave and then die due to the cold weather.
Redell says that since the disease has been in Wisconsin for the last 10 years, the numbers of bats are starting to grow again. Currently they do not know how the bats are being able to survive through the winter with the disease. Through this adaption the Little Brown Bat population is starting to regrow to over 50% of the original population in some sites.
How To Remove
If you come across these helpful creatures in your home, the DNR asks that if they are not in an immediate living area, to wait until the fall and winter months to take them out. This is because many times they are using the space to feed and nurture their young then will leave. When you want to exclude bats from your house, they say to turn on the lights and open the windows. They can sense the airflow and should fly out on their own.
Bats are very helpful creatures to everyone as in Wisconsin they eat 17 different species of mosquitoes. Nine of which are known to transmit West Nile virus. They also eat many insects that affect crops such as corn borer, cutworm moth, potato beetle, grasshoppers, and corn earworm. Redell explains that a study shows bats save farmers 658 million to 1.5 Billion dollars a year on pesticides. Whether you are a farmer or just don’t like getting bit by mosquitoes, bats are animals that can benefit everyone.
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