Help Forsyth County's Bats
Learn about bats. Bats fly in the dark and we cannot hear their calls. So, they often seem to be invisible and remain unfamiliar to us. But bats are fascinating creatures that have always been a vital part of our environment. Bats in Georgia fill a very similar niche during the night that bluebirds, flycatchers, and other insectivorous birds fill by day. You can learn more about bats and bat conservation with Bat Conservation International.
Grow bat-friendly native plants. When natural habitat is altered by development or natural forces, bats and other wildlife not only lose their home, they may also lose sources of food too. The Georgia Department of Natural Resources has a list of native plants that attract moths and other night flying insects that bats can hunt. Examples of these bat-friendly plants include Columbine, Wild Indigo, Button Bush, Mountain Mint, and Black-eyed Susan.
Install a bat house. Consider installing a bat house on your property or as a neighborhood community project. Putting up a bat house can help compensate for lost natural roosting options and encourage bats to eat the bugs over your yard. If you need to exclude bats from your attic, then putting up a bat house nearby is highly recommended.
Before buying or building a bat house, determine where you want to place it. In general, it should be mounted 10 to 12+ feet high on the side of a building or on a post where it can receive 6+ hours of direct sunlight. They should not be mounted on, or within, 20 feet of trees. Bat Conservation International and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service have additional information and guidance on bat houses.
Fully assembled houses or pre-cut kits are available that can reduce the amount of work needed for construction. Building a bat house from scratch may be more economical. The Georgia DNR has links for fully assembled houses, kits, and do-it-yourself plans. Your bat house should be painted a medium to light brown or tan and oriented to face south. Installing two or more bat houses increases your chances for success. If bats move in, consider keeping a count of how many are present and share your observations with the Georgia DNR Bat Roost Monitoring project.
Each winter, check to ensure the bat house is weather tight and free of wasp nests, etc. Clean, caulk, repaint, repair, relocate, or replace as needed. Bats may take a while to find your bat house. But if they haven’t moved in within about 2 years, you may want to change the orientation, location, or color.
Bats in Your house. Respect bats as you would any wild animal and do not handle or harass them. They are protected by law. Georgia DNR has information on what to do if you have bats in your house or see a bat behaving unusually.
A colony of bats inside your home’s attic should not be removed / excluded during the period from April 1st to July 31st when flightless young may be present. See the Georgia DNR website for more details and a list of nuisance wildlife control operators that can help.
Risks from bats. The CDC stated that “In the United States, more raccoons have rabies than other wild animals, but it is bites from bats that cause the most rabies in people.” There are usually only one or two human rabies cases each year in the United States compared to an average of about 60 deaths per year from hornet, wasp, and bee stings. Like most wild animals, bats prefer to avoid contact with humans. However, rabies is fatal. So, anyone who has physical contact with a bat should get medical advice. See the Georgia DNR Wildlife Resources Division website for more information about bats and human contact.
REMEMBER: A bat that can be easily approached by humans is more likely to be sick and may bite if handled. Simply do not touch or handle a bat or any other wild animal and there is little chance of being bitten.