Holy Attic Residents, It’s National Bat Week

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Public Information Specialist Dan Ruiter reminds us on our Friday MIdday DNR report this is National Bat Week.

We're not talking about the baseball kind but the mammals that Ruiter believes are often misunderstood.

For example he says, " Bats will not fly into your hair or attack you.  While chasing insects bats often fly erratically because the insects are flying that way.  This has led some people to mistakenly believe they are being 'attacked' by the bat.  Bats are proficient flyers and can easily catch insects while avoiding people."

Ruiter also points out, "Not all bats carry rabies.  The percentage of infected bats is very small, less than one percent.  Although incidence of rabies in bats is low, a bat with rabies may show no outward sign of infection.  Therefore, whenever handling a bat, always protect yourself by wearing leather gloves."

I'm sure you are not shocked to know that bats love eating mosquitoes which makes them a good friend of mine.  I hate mosquitoes.  So apparently does Mr. Ruiter.

He says, "The enormous quantities of mosquitoes and other insects that bats consume each year make summers in Minnesota more livable."

Ruiter does say bats can be a "nuisance."  "The most common bat/human interactions involve a single bat that has found a way into a house or a colony of bats that has taken up residence in an attic, chimney or other structure."

There are over 100 species of bats in the world and very few have been tested to see what they eat according to the website gardenmyths.com.

Just three species are vampires.  All the rest eat insects, fruits, nectar and pollen.

It makes sense doesn't it that National Bat Week would be during the week of Halloween?  Bats have become synonymous with the holiday.

A majority of bats operate at night and live in spooky places.

Below is our KDHL Midday DNR Report for Friday, October 30, 2020.