Why Make a Home for Bats in Your Yard?
Bat houses make an ideal home for bats -- a part of the balance of nature in the worldwide ecosystem. Including a bat house on your property encourages bat habitat, and one way you can help maintain beneficial bat populations. And, bats eat mosquitoes by the bucket load. Flying mosquito control.
These shy and mysterious creatures just fit with the strange, mystifying nature of Halloween night. (And just so you know, there are no vampire bats in the United States or Canada.)
A single bat of many species eats mosquitoes by the hundreds, even thousands, every night. They also help keep other insect pests like corn borers and cutworms under control.
Colonies of as few as 150 big brown bats can protect local farmers from up to 33 million or more root worms each summer, according to a USDA study.
Bat houses that you build or purchase can help replace the natural bat habitat that is disappearing in our modern world. A bat house will help balance nature in your area, and prevents bats from seeking shelter in attics or other spaces where humans would prefer they not take up residence.
Bat house photo by Sally K. Unfinished wood home for bats.
Presented by: Kimbesa
These shy and mysterious creatures just fit with the strange, mystifying nature of Halloween night. (And just so you know, there are no vampire bats in the United States or Canada.)
A single bat of many species eats mosquitoes by the hundreds, even thousands, every night. They also help keep other insect pests like corn borers and cutworms under control.
Colonies of as few as 150 big brown bats can protect local farmers from up to 33 million or more root worms each summer, according to a USDA study.
Bat houses that you build or purchase can help replace the natural bat habitat that is disappearing in our modern world. A bat house will help balance nature in your area, and prevents bats from seeking shelter in attics or other spaces where humans would prefer they not take up residence.
Bat house photo by Sally K. Unfinished wood home for bats.
Presented by: Kimbesa
Bat House Tips
To Help Attract a Beneficial Colony
A bat house on your property can make a home attractive to bats.- Mount the house in the fall or winter, so the wood can age in preparation for the bats
- Fasten the house with nails or screws
- Select a location under the eaves of a tall building, house, garage or barn about 12 to 15 feet above the ground
- Site the house facing south, and in a spot where it will receive sunlight for most of the day
- Choose a location that is close to water, such as a pond, marsh or stream
- Put the bat house in an area away from humans, to prevent scaring the bats, and so that bat waste won't become a problem
The best-designed houses are 24 to 36 inches tall, 16 to 24 inches wide, and 4 to 5 inches deep, with one to four roosting chambers inside. Houses that have three-quarter inch wide roosting chambers are best, to prevent wasps from moving in. Rough lumber allows bats to cling more easily.
Bat House Building Guide
Build your own bat houses with this guide.
The Bat House Builder's Handbook, Completely Revised and Updated
Amazon Price: $5.25 (as of 02/23/2012)
You'll be able to make bat houses from your own materials, to fit your location.
Bat Houses on Amazon
Would You Put a Bat House in Your Yard?
Loading poll. Please Wait...
Kids and Bats
Bats get to be creepy for Halloween, and understood all year long as having an important role to play on Planet Earth.
Kids Discover Bats
Amazon Price: $434.45 (as of 02/23/2012)
Teach kids ecology by learning about the benefits of bats.
More Books About Bats
Featured Lenses About Bats
More lenses about bats.
What Do You Think About Having a Bat House?
Could Your Environment Benefit?
submit
-
Reply
-
AnthonyAltorenna
Feb 13, 2012 @ 5:21 pm | delete
- Bats eat a tremendous amount of bugs (especially mosquitoes) and they are always welcome visitors to our yard. Two thumbs up for hanging a bat house!
-
-
Reply
-
NotTooTall
Aug 11, 2011 @ 10:12 am | delete
- Hi Kimbesa,
I enjoyed reading your lense. My friend has a 'batitat' as he calls it, and the bats inhabited it soon after he installed it. They are so benificial to our environment, he told me that 1 bat can consume 1,200 misquitos in a single evening. I'm for that! ^..^
N T T
-
-
Reply
-
vallain
Jul 7, 2011 @ 8:12 am | delete
- This is really nifty and just what I need for our summer place in the woods. One bat roosted in the ribs of our deck umbrella. Since we didn't realize he was there, the bat was injured when we closed the umbrella. We felt really bad about that.
-
-
Reply
-
Mujjen
Jul 5, 2011 @ 4:49 am | delete
- We have a lot of bats in the garden behind our house, we watch them sometimes at night. Had never thought of building a bat house, until now that is!
-
-
Reply
-
alteredkat
Jun 5, 2011 @ 8:32 am | delete
- eldest kid made one of these in cubs...we have it out back...there are bats in the bush but not sure if they are using the house yet...I'm all for feeding them our mosquitoes! :o)
-
-
Reply
-
Sylvestermouse
Mar 19, 2011 @ 11:11 am | delete
- I love bats. Unfortunately because the bat houses have to be set up so high, we are not allowed to have them in our community. "They could be seen from the street." I think that is ridiculous! Makes me mad every time I think about it. We certainly had them at our last home.
-
-
Reply
-
Kimbesa
Mar 19, 2011 @ 2:11 pm | delete
- That's disappointing to hear, they just don't want to allow habitat for bats. We have bat houses at the nearby nature center, to help with mosquito control for the entire area.
-
-
Reply
-
ChrisDay
Feb 3, 2011 @ 3:00 pm | delete
- I'll go for it!
-
-
Reply
-
JaguarJulie
Dec 30, 2010 @ 6:27 am | delete
- You know, where I used to live, we had bats ... there were bats that lived in the columns of the club house and when there would be a function, the bats would fly out like entertainment at dusk. I remember, before I left that house, that I would stand in the front yard at dusk and watch the bats fly around ... didn't contemplate having a bat house though.
-
-
Reply
-
Kimbesa
Nov 21, 2010 @ 8:13 pm | delete
- Thanks everybody! Blessed and purple star...awesome!
-
-
Reply
-
CCGAL
Oct 31, 2010 @ 4:39 pm | delete
- It would be awesome to have a bat house. It's so cool to see the bats come out from under the bridges around here - the ones down at the Congress Street Bridge are practically famous.
***Blessed*** on my last day as a squid angel.
-
-
Reply
-
BigGirlBlue
Oct 25, 2010 @ 12:55 am | delete
- I would totally put a bat house up. I hear they eat lots of mosquitoes which we always have way too many of.
-
-
Reply
-
Fitzcharming
Oct 14, 2010 @ 6:06 pm | delete
- I've always wanted a bat house. I even bought one once but it needs a 30 foot pole and that I don't have. Nice articles.
-
This Halloween Magazine page written by
Kimbesa
The creepiest, kookiest, altogether ookiest...
Connect with Halloween Magazine
This author recommends...
-
Mosquito Netting
Mosquito netting is a decorative way to add the protection we need and they add... -
How to Build a Bat House for the Backyard
Bat House Bats are one of the best natural defenses against mosquitoes and other... -
Bat House Kits
Bats play an important part in our environment. Unfortunately, due to unwarrante... -
Rain Gardens-Nature's Water Filters
A rain garden in your yard can help protect your regional watershed and reduce e... -
How to attract bats to your garden
Bats can be a valuable addition to your garden because their primary food source... -
How to Build a Bat Box
Bats have gotten a bad rap thanks to the old time monster movies. Fact is, bats...
Get Started With Bats
Stokes Beginner's Guide to Bats
Amazon Price: $5.79 (as of 02/23/2012)
Help the environment with a bat house.
Introducing Bats to Children
Bat Loves the Night: Read and Wonder
Amazon Price: $1.82 (as of 02/23/2012)
A charming story, with real biology of bats in the details.
