It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s a...Bat? Consider Placing a Bat House In Your Yard for These Flying Friends

Friend of witches and alter-ego of vampires, bats tend to have a pretty spooky reputation—especially in the month of October. Bats are nocturnal and tend not to interact with humans, which is partially to blame for their reputation. Folklorists would describe them as “liminal”—i.e., they don’t fit into the order of most human’s lives, or cross paths with day-dwellers like your beloved backyard birds. The truth is—similar to many of the other unseen, silent or invisible creatures that keep our earth moving—bats actually play a huge role in your yard’s ecosystem, aiding in insect control as well as plant pollination in the Southwest. In 2014, The Center for Biological Diversity reported that bats are responsible for between $3.7 billion and $53 billion in nontoxic pest control services each year. That’s a huge chunk of change, and they’ll never even ask you to foot the bill. 

There are 1,300-plus species of bats all over the world, and more than 500 plant species depend on them for pollination including mangoes, bananas, almonds, cashews and agave. Bats have even been valuable in the field of medical research, as scientists have studied their methods of hunting via echolocation to develop navigational aids for the blind.

As it turns out, not all bats live in caves (or in coffins!). In fact, you might find some bats living in your own neighborhood. Wild Birds Unlimited’s Bat Habitat Guide points out that these natural mosquito predators not only save humans from spending billions of dollars on pesticides, but they are intelligent animals that communicate using sophisticated ultrasonic signals to navigate the night skies. 

Many bat species are threatened or endangered worldwide as a result of habitat loss, deforestation, mining and careless tourism. Even still, many bats are regarded as dangerous pests because of fear, misinformation and harmful myths. 

Brian Cunningham, Wild Birds Unlimited’s Manager of Product and Hobby Education, encourages outdoor enthusiasts to rethink tired stigmas about bats. “If you love birds, just remember that bats are essential to maintaining stable outdoor ecosystems and making your backyard an enjoyable place to be,” Cunningham said. “I want to welcome other birding enthusiasts to demystify bats and do their part in aiding in the conservation of these fascinating, vital animals.”

By providing a bat house, like these from Wild Birds Unlimited, you can take a small step in contributing to conservation efforts, attract bats to your yard and provide a safe home that mimics bats’ traditional homes, like the narrow space between bark and tree trunk. Bats use houses primarily as nurseries, but some male bats might simply use them for roosting. Bat houses should be located near a reliable water source and be hung at least 15 feet from the ground in a space where it receives morning sunlight. 

In the northern two-thirds of the U.S. and Canada, the native species—affectionately named Little Brown Bat and the Big Brown Bat—have been known to use bat houses in the warmer summer months, while they will generally move south for the winter, much like birds. Throughout other, warmer parts of North America and Mexico, the Southeastern Bat, Pallid Bats, the Evening Bat, the Eastern Pipistrelle, Yuma Myotis and the Mexican Free-tailed Bat might find their way to a bat house near you.

Bat houses like the Wild Birds Unlimited Triple Chamber Bat House can hold up to 300 bats in its three separate chambers, designed to accommodate colonies of mother bats and their pups. One Little Brown Bat can catch hundreds of mosquitos in a single evening, making them an essential, eco-friendly and pretty cute pest-extermination service.

Next time you see a bat, don’t get spooked! They’re not going to get stuck in your hair or drink your blood. These fuzzy, flying mammals can be a great resource to your yard.