bat houses?

jack707 · Jun 9, 2015

I put up a bat house on a 4x4 14' up away from the trees and in the AM its sunny there. My question is how long before the bats find the house? there plenty of bugs for them to eat here!.

RobA · Jun 9, 2015

I made one and put it up about 5 years ago. I think they finally are using it this year....

breadtrk · Jun 9, 2015

I'm in bat country so I put up 3 of them on the property when I bought 30 years ago. The one on the security light pole was being used the 2nd year. One on the barn took 4 years. The 3rd on the telephone pole that goes over the mountain...... I'm not sure but there is a 15 ft deep pile of poo under it.

JerryK · Jun 9, 2015

We get some during the time of the year the moths are thick and flying around at night. The tend to overnight by a food source. Found one in a wood pile years ago when I was unstacking wood in the daytime Scared the krap out of me when it took off... You see them flying around about 20-30 feet up just as the light starts to finally fade into night... when the stars are coming out.

jack707 · Jun 10, 2015

Thanks alot guys I just hope it doesn't take years for them!.

breadtrk · Jun 10, 2015

breadtrk said:
I'm in bat country so I put up 3 of them on the property when I bought 30 years ago. The one on the security light pole was being used the 2nd year. One on the barn took 4 years. The 3rd on the telephone pole that goes over the mountain...... I'm not sure but there is a 15 ft deep pile of poo under it.

I put that 3rd one up and pretty much forgot about it. This thread made me go look. Guess who is cutting a trail through the years of over grown brush to get at that pile? I bet there are at least 5 FEL buckets full there, and the ground around it should be very rich too. I'm going to incorporate it into a Garlic bed I'm developing for use this fall.

breadtrk · Jun 10, 2015

breadtrk said:
I'm in bat country so I put up 3 of them on the property when I bought 30 years ago. The one on the security light pole was being used the 2nd year. One on the barn took 4 years. The 3rd on the telephone pole that goes over the mountain...... I'm not sure but there is a 15 ft deep pile of poo under it.

I put that 3rd one up and pretty much forgot about it. This thread made me go look. Guess who is cutting a trail through the years of over grown brush to get at that pile? I bet there are at least 5 FEL buckets full there, and the ground around it should be very rich too. I'm going to incorporate it into a Garlic bed I'm developing for use this fall.

TCJatko · Jun 10, 2015

breadtrk said:
I'm in bat country so I put up 3 of them on the property when I bought 30 years ago. The one on the security light pole was being used the 2nd year. One on the barn took 4 years. The 3rd on the telephone pole that goes over the mountain...... I'm not sure but there is a 15 ft deep pile of poo under it.

You need to scoop that poop and use it in the garden; great fertilizer.

DrRod · Jun 10, 2015

Yes, in the old days, they mined it from the entrance to Carlsbad Caverns and shipped it as far as France for fertilizer. Hard to believe that could be done at a profit but it must have worth it to the end users.

Similar, they shipped cliff loads of bird droppings from the west coast of South America. Bolivia and Peru fought a war over ownership of the fertile area -- Bolivia lost and so has no coastal territory. They are still arguing over it.

I've noticed how green the grass was under my martin house [which was only ever populated by swallows but that's ok].

dfkrug · Jun 11, 2015

DrRod said:
Yes, in the old days, they mined it from the entrance to Carlsbad Caverns and
shipped it as far as France for fertilizer. Hard to believe that could be done at a profit but it must have
worth it to the end users.

The guano was also used at the time in the making of explosives.

We found the million+ bats that vomit forth from the Carlsbad Cavern entrance at dusk to be
more amazing than the inside of the caves.

dave1949 · Jun 11, 2015

Some success with treating White Nose Syndrome:

Bananas to Bats: The Science Behind the First Bats Successfully Treated for White-Nose Syndrome | Cool Green Science

caver · Jun 11, 2015

dfkrug said:
We found the million+ bats that vomit forth from the Carlsbad Cavern entrance at dusk to be
more amazing than the inside of the caves.

I've been down inside the entrance during the evening bat flight. I was with a group who does volunteer work for the cave and we got back early from our restoration project. A bird researcher needed help banding cave swallows and that was our reward. It was very bizarre having thousands of bats flying past you. the morning flight is cool too as they come back one by one. They do a dive bomb into the entrance and their wings make a sound like burning plastic as it drips.

DrRod · Jun 11, 2015

I've always wondered what they eat. I just never thought of the southwestern desert as being highly buggy.

Other thing I wonder about is do the bats prefer the bat house and therefore leave your house/porch alone? We've had bats camping in the porch rafters for years and for a while they were getting into the house [not at all cool]. Would a couple of bat houses draw them away from the house or just bring more bats into the area?

One night I turned on the house spot lights, which attracted a zillion bugs, and in turn a zillion bats. It was amazing how many bats congregated around the yard. And when they aren't frittering about they fly at incredible speed [sort of the bat out of **** thing]. And they would zip into the woods and back out at such speed that you would think they would hit trees. Something to be admired in something so viscerally offensive.

breadtrk · Jun 11, 2015

Bleach spray will dissuade them from using your rafters. But, why bother? Can you seriously state one time any of those bats got in your hair or wife's hair, or any other instance of inconvenience? One instance of them landing on you or any other human?

Just one will do, don't fall into the mainstream media induced fear of bats. They are not sounding you, you are way too big, their soundings direct them away form you.

Fire Quacker · Jun 12, 2015

Been wanting to put up a couple bat houses at our pond but haven't got around to it. We see them now and then, not many though. As long as they didn't bother the martins or blue birds everything would be kosher.

breadtrk · Jun 12, 2015

A pond is a very good bonus. Go for it.

Redneck in training · Jun 12, 2015

We see bats flying around our place too. I put up several bat houses but none was ever occupied. There are lot of hollow trees in the woods so they have places to sleep I suppose. Friend of mine had them in the wall of his house. So he built a bat house and placed it nearby then when they left to feed at evening he plugged the entry hole. Next night the bat house was occupied. Here is a link to the largest bat house in the world.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaJElsZcrTo

dfkrug · Jun 12, 2015

caver said:
I've been down inside the entrance during the evening bat flight. I was with a group who
does volunteer work for the cave and we got back early from our restoration project. A bird researcher needed
help banding cave swallows and that was our reward. It was very bizarre having thousands of bats flying past
you. the morning flight is cool too as they come back one by one. They do a dive bomb into the entrance and
their wings make a sound like burning plastic as it drips.

That musta been cool.

Around here in the Santa Cruz Mtns, when the bats come out in the eve, they swoop around and miss
your head within inches, but I never hear them. These are amazing and beneficial creatures. Like snakes,
I do not know why folks are freaked out by them. They never fly into you, and only bite you if you try to pick them
up.

Any truth to the theory that bats do not defecate in flight? If true, a flock of them flying overhead would
not be as risky as birds are.

caver · Jun 13, 2015

dfkrug said:
Any truth to the theory that bats do not defecate in flight? If true, a flock of them flying overhead would
not be as risky as birds are.

I've never heard that....they crap on my camper when over at my rural property.

Redneck in training · Jun 13, 2015

I visited Niah cave on Borneo many years ago. The cave is inhabited by swallows and bats. The swallows exit in the morning and the bats return at evening it is the other way around. It is magnificent sight to see million(s) of swallows and bats exit or enter the cave. Yes there are many meters of guano in the cave.
The swallows nest are harvested and cleaned by people (they have to have a license) and sold on the market for swallow's nest soup. If you fly via Kuala Lumpur you can buy it on the airport. I watched a guy harvesting the nest. He was hanging on one hand on mahogany plank anchored to the ceiling and poking the nests down with a bamboo stick. Needles to say that the cavern is several hundred feet high. I will find pictures and post them later.