As summer fades into the spookiest season of the year, now is the perfect time to think about giving a helping hand to some of Ontario’s smallest mammal residents, who will in turn help to keep your backyard a bug-free zone in the warmer months.
According to the Canadian Wildlife Federation and Ontario Nature, Ontario is home to eight different species of bat, several of which are listed on the endangered species list in the province. The tiny mammals are symbols of both the night sky and especially of the Halloween season, but in reality offer relatively few reasons to be afraid. While bats are known to sometimes carry rabies (studies have shown that less than one percent of bats contract the disease), as long as humans don’t handle bats unnecessarily, or without wearing protective equipment like gloves, there is little to fear from our furry flying friends. In fact, bat species in Ontario are voracious insectivores who need to consume thousands of mosquitoes each night to keep up with their metabolic demands, especially if they are a pregnant or nursing mother. Still, any unintentional contact with a bat, even if there is no visible bite or scratch mark, should err on the side of caution and seek medical attention, including if you suspect your pet has had an encounter with a bat.
Bats in Ontario, and much of North America, have also faced an uphill battle in recent years owing to a fungus known as Pseudogymnoascus destructans, which leads to a debilitating condition known as white nose syndrome (WNS). Bats affected by WNS have a signature white fuzz around their nose and mouth, hence the name. The disease is particularly deadly to bats because it grows best in cold, dark and damp places like caves or old mines, which is typically where Ontario’s non-migratory bat species prefer to hibernate. The disease then forces the bats to become more active in the winter months when they should be hibernating, which in turn uses up more of their energy and fat reserves and leads to them starving before the warmer months return. In some cases, according to whitenosesyndrome.org, colonies infected with WNS have seen 90 to 100 percent of bats dying due to the disease, which in turn has a knock-on effect on larger environment. Some experts estimate that roughly 5.7 million bats in North America have died due to WNS since scientists began studying it in the late 2000’s.
There is no known cure for WNS, however, recent studies have looked into ways to inoculate bat colonies to help them better fight off an infection in the event the fungus spreads to them. Residents of the Rainy River District can also do their part to help local bat species have a great summer, and even improve the enjoyment of a warm, summer night in their backyard, by researching, buying or building and installing a bat house, or bat box, in your backyard.
Bat boxes can come in many different shapes and sizes, but in essence they are small boxes mounted in high-up places that mimic the natural resting spots that Ontario’s bats prefer. They are typically wooden and provide a number of small chambers for bats to roost during the day, before setting out again at night to catch their allotment of pesky bugs. Bat houses offer protection against the elements and predators, and can be built to house many different bats, or only a few individuals.
While there are many different elements to consider when it comes to buying or building a bat house, Bat Conservation International offers up several tips for homeowners or landowners to consider when looking to install a place for furry friends. First off, bat boxes should be installed in early spring, before the birthing season, or at the end of summer in preparation for next year. The boxes should also be installed in locations where they will get between two and eight hours of sunlight each day. Bats have temperature preferences just like any other mammal, and so need to keep warm, but not too hot. A bat box designed with several chambers can offer different climates for bats to move around in to keep comfortable, and larger boxes installed on poles (such as designs referred to as “rocket boxes”) can offer the same variability between the side that faces the sun and the side kept in shade.
Bat boxes should be installed well above and out of the reach of any potential predators, including raccoons and indoor/outdoor cats. While uncommon, snakes can also scale poles to some extent, and so baffling similar to that used to prevent squirrels from getting into bird feeders can also be considered. As a general rule, bat boxes should be installed at least 12 feet (3.6 metres) off the ground on a pole or attached to the side of a building. Experts recommend against installing them directly on trees, as that increases the possibility of predation by other animals. Bats also require significant take off and landing space, so your backyard box should also be installed with roughly 20 to 30 feet (six to nine metres) of clear space from trees or other surfaces, which also allows for airflow to the box to help regulate the temperature in the bat box.
The good news about bat boxes is that they are relatively affordable to buy, and even more affordable to build if you have an aptitude for wood work. While some store bought boxes lack in several areas against what is recommended by experts, plans are widely available online for many different styles that check off most, if not all, of the suggested requirements for a successful bat box. Included in those plans are all the materials you will need to build a box, and often recommendations for installing it once finished. For some recommended plans, check out the Canadian Wildlife Federation, National Wildlife Federation, or even Ontario Parks websites.
While there is no guarantee that a bat will ever move into a bat box installed on your property, these animals are significant factors in the health of our ecosystem, and beneficial to keeping irritating insect populations down, meaning that humans helping bats survive and thrive is a win-win for both species.
