Permaculture Projects: Attracting Bats

The Little Brown Bat.

The most common bat in North America.
3-4 inches long and less than 12 inch wingspan.

http://bigdogsbirdblog.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/little_brown_bat.jpg

Attracting bats?  Oh, yeah!  I love bats.  Hopefully, after reading this post, you will at least gain an appreciation for this much maligned denizen of the night.

In the last few weeks, there has been a huge increase in mosquitos where I live.  Last year at about this time, I could watch the bats hunting at night.  This year, I haven't seen any bats.  I am hoping that this is just temporary.  I have had to treat cellulitis from infected mosquito bites about five times in the last week alone.  I have never before had this many infected bites clustered in a short time like this.  There are real consequences to not having bats in your local area, and this is just one of them.

The beautiful Hoary Bat.

A common North American bat, and the only bat in Hawaii.

http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/photos/05-15-07/eatonbat.jpg

Quick Bat Facts:

• Bats are the number one predator of insects.
• One bat can eat 2,000 - 6,000 insects... per night!  Reread that last sentence.  Wow!
• In one summer (let's say 90 days), that is over half a million insects... for one bat!
• Bats are the primary pollinator of the agave plant.  Tequila comes from agave.  No bats... no tequila!
• Vampire Bats do exist... not in North America, and they are quite rare.
• About half of all bats are endangered or threatened... primarily due to loss of habitat, pollution, and human persecution.
• Bats rarely contract rabies... less than 40 people have gotten rabies from a bat in the last 50 years.  Worldwide, over 50,000 people die each year from rabies, and the most common vector is dogs.
• Bats are not blind.
• Bats are not attracted to humans, and will avoid humans at all costs.
• Bat guano (manure) is a great fertilizer with a very high concentration of nitrogen.

Townsend's Big-Eared Bat.

Endangered in Eastern North America

http://www.sciencephoto.com/image/385263/530wm/Z9150013-Townsend_s_big-eared_bat-SPL.jpg

I have stood in a field both in Nigeria and in Turkey with bats swooping all around me.  They were feeding on the insects flying over the fields just after dusk.  I could feel the breeze a few times as they flew close, but they never touched me.  I am talking about dozens of bats in a small field, in the dark, with no collisions with me or each other while picking insects out of midair.  They are amazing flyers!

Installing a bat house!

http://www.batguys.com/resources/images/sbinsfull.JPG

Attracting Bats
How do you attract bats to your property?  Build bat houses!  This will keep insect populations down in your local area and will provide you with a source for great compost.

The Organization for Bat Conservation is a great resource for information on bats.  They also have free plans for building bat houses as well - click here for a link to their PDF download page.

Here is a great interview with the Rob Mies, the co-founder and director of The Organization for Bat Conservation.  Aired on The Survival Podcast.

Not all bat houses will be used.  If you live in a cool climate, they may stay in the bat house for the spring-fall, but will hibernate somewhere else.  Where you place the bat house is determined by where you live.  Again, The Organization for Bat Conservation has a great page explaining where to place your bat house.

The Spotted Bat

An elusive and little known bat of North America.

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/learning/webcasts/caves/images/68_spotted_bat.jpg

So, I am a huge fan of bats.  They are a huge asset and, to me, an integral component of a well-designed Permaculture System.  Consider attracting bats to your property today!