Bats are among the most common and widespread invasive species that we have here in North America, and it’s important that we begin to understand how and why these interesting creatures work. Deemed by many to be little more than flying mice, bats are actually rather complex creatures, considered helpful for the environment.
Not only do bats feed on various pest and invasive insects that are harming our agriculture, but they also play an essential role in the pollination process. As such, many states have prohibited the active killing, and even harming mice through exclusion or removal techniques.
This is why, if you find yourself in the midst of a bat infestation, the best thing you can do is call a professional wildlife removal company like Nuisance Wildlife Pros, as they will be prepared to handle all your wildlife removal needs. Safely and legally.
What you need to know about bat calendars
Like many wild animals, bats will typically go into hibernation during the cold, winter months. The cold weather causes a lot of insects to die off, leaving bats with precarious dietary perspectives for the foreseeable future. If you see a bat flying around during winter, it is more than likely to be a male, as they tend to get restless in the hibernating den.
What’s particularly interesting to note is that bats will typically mate during the cold winter months of January and February, with males mating with the hibernating female. Since bats are endowed with a selective breeding capability, this means the female bat, once awoken from her slumber, will be able to decide whether she wishes to accept the male’s sperm, or remain unimpregnated. This will also heavily influence when the pups are born.
Depending on the specific climate in your area, bats will re-emerge from hibernating sometimes during the mid to late spring. In late spring, male and female bats tend to go their separate ways, with male bats creating their own bachelor colony, while the gestating females create a maternal colony.
Often, when dealing with invasive bats on your property, you will find maternal colonies, as it is the females who are more prone to look for a safe, warm environment to deliver and nurture their young. Removing a maternal bat colony is seriously frowned upon in most states, and should not be attempted on your own. Since the pups are too small to fly out on their own or find food, removing or excluding the mother bat would only condemn them to starvation, which is unnecessary and cruel. You can learn more atbatremoval.org.
Over the summer, the mother bats will settle in their maternal colonies, to give birth and care for their young. Most baby bats are born somewhere between early July to late August, and most need a few weeks to get their bearings, and learn how to fend for themselves.
This is why, in most cases of discovering an invasive bat colony on your property, you will most likely be advised to wait, because once the baby bats have learned to be self-reliant, the bats will flee the nest on their own.
The Most Active Time of the Year
To answer our title question, the most active season for bats is, hands down, autumn. In September, the weather has already started getting quite cold, and bats will begin to feel pressure to start preparing for the winter. During this month, pretty much all the baby bats will have learned to fend for themselves, and go off on their own.
It’s also during autumn that male and female bats will begin regrouping after their prolonged separation, and start feeding excessively, in order to get down as much fat as they can for the coming winter.
This is why you will notice a spike in bat activity between September and November – the flying rodents are simply trying to get enough food in them to last them through the cold months.
During September, you may be able to remove bats from your attic or shed without getting a special permit from local authorities, since they are no longer in a baby-raising phase.
During winter, they also begin to look for a new, sturdier home over the winter, which is usually in a secluded cave, or an abandoned building. As they prepare for the winter, the bats will be thinking exclusively about food, and what they can do to be better prepared for winter. They will be eating insects indiscriminately (which may turn out to be a good thing for you!).
As winter approaches, the bats will start coming out less and less, since flying in cold nights would require more energy, and thus waste more calories. Typically, this is when we see the settle.
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