Bats in Can Lights

[chocolatelab]

Hmmmm

Upgrading some of the can lights around the house. At the front door we have a hard ceiling above the entry with 2 can lights exterior. This morning I pulled the cans so I could install led replacements. Each can light had a bat living inside.

One fell out. He is in a box now. The other is still up there.

What the heck do I do with these bats?

[masraum]

Soup?. Maybe an enchilada.

[porsche4life]

Are these exterior lights? Leave Em. Little dudes are cutting down on Mosquitos.

[rusnak]

Yep. I'd relocate them to a barn or shed.

[chocolatelab]

Yeah right.

I just googled and found bat houses.

The new led enclosures don't give the bat a place to sleep.

Ill put out a couple of bat houses and close up the lights in think.

[Eric Coffey]

Yeah, if they are roosting in fixtures near/above the front door, you probably want to do something about that. Change out the cans and/or cover them so there is no access for bats to get up there.

They are great for keeping the flying insect population down, but there is risk of disease to humans and pets that "coexist" with them (albeit relatively small). Being near the front door would increase the chances of one getting in the house as well. Even though the percentage of rabies-carrying bats is fairly low, it is a disease that can be transmitted by means other than just being bitten by the infected animal. So, best not to encourage any close-proximity scenarios with them IMO.

[Bugsinrugs]

I had a bat land on my neck when I was rafting down the Salmon river. When I got home my brother in law who is a doctor made me get rabies shots. Any contact at all warrent the shots. Once they determine you have rabies it's too late.

[Rick V]

Don't place a bat house anywhere where you don't want a mess. Guano and all. Also bets can not take flight from the ground, they have to drop into flight, a grounded bat is a dead bat.
Like Sid said, save them, they are good to have around

[chocolatelab]

Rick I did not know that!

One of the bats ended up in a box in the garage for the afternoon.

This evening Bryce and I took him into the backyard and opened the box.

He wasn't going anywhere.

I held the box up and kind of slid him out and he took off.

I really think they are cool.

[Rick V]

Oh also do your homework and you will find that a bat house should be somewhere with a southern exposure. Yeah as you can tell we don't have a great many misquotes here at my house and I live in a river town. Bats are creepy, bats can carry disease but they are fun to watch and actually good to have around. Bats are good people

[tabs]

I always did think you were batty

[ckelly78z]

My wife starts seeing bats at dusk and freaks out thinking they are going to get in her hair....I generally laugh at her and do my best bat call and wing flapping sounds.......she's not amused by this.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by Rick V

Also bets can not take flight from the ground, they have to drop into flight, a grounded bat is a dead bat.

Dead? All they have to do is crawl up on something. They are tenacious crawlers. I had a Brown bat living in the bottom of a tall urn on my porch. When he went on the hunt I assume he crawled to the top and then took off.
At least some bat species can take off from the ground. I once saw a video of a bat taking off vertically. I'll try to find it and post it here.

Here it is:

http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2013/07/how-bats-take-flight-revealed-by-x-ray/277582/

[chocolatelab]

I think I have the california myotis

California Bat species

One article I read said all the worry about rabies is nonsense.

Something like 50 confirmed rabbis cases in 40 years.

[flipper35]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

Dead? All they have to do is crawl up on something. They are tenacious crawlers. I had a Brown bat living in the bottom of a tall urn on my porch. When he went on the hunt I assume he crawled to the top and then took off.
At least some bat species can take off from the ground. I once saw a video of a bat taking off vertically. I'll try to find it and post it here.

Here it is:

How Bats Take Flight, Revealed by X-Ray - The Atlantic

Yup. Mom had one get in the house and it was on the entrance floor. Before she could do anything it flew off. She later found it on a glue board for mice.

She is paranoid about mice and bats. She has been bitten by both and rabies shots are no fun.

[Baz]

Great thread!

FYI: there are some cool bat vids on my Sweet Sam thread......

Sweet Sam

[Baz]

There's a YT channel called Batzilla the Bat with some very cute videos from down under.....here's the latest....listen to this little guy.....not a happy camper!

[Baz]