Bats in Ontario
It is bat season for Wildlife Custodians across Ontario. Bats are very interesting creatures. They are the only flying mammals we have. Unlike popular believe Ontario’s bats are all aerial insectivores. This means they eat flying insects such as mosquitos and moths. Not fruit as is often thought.
The bat population across North America is declining rapidly for various reasons. Habitat degradation/loss play a large role in this, but also White Nose Syndrome has caused whole colonies to be wiped out.
White Nose Syndrome is a fungal disease inadvertently brought from Europe to North America. The fungus grows well in a cold/damp environment and has devastated bat colonies in hibernation caves. Much research has been done and methods are being tested to eradicate the fungus from these spaces.
Species of bats
In Ontario we have 8 species of bats. Out of these 8, 4 species are listed as endangered on the species at risk list. They are the Eastern Small Footed Bat, the Tricoloured Bat, Little Brown Bat and the Northern Long Eared Bat.
We can divide these 8 species in tree-dwelling migratory bats who fly south when the temperature drops and crevice-dwelling hibernating bats who hibernate during the colder months.
The most common bat we see in for rehabilitation is the Big Brown Bat.
Big Brown bats are often confused with the endangered Little Brown Bat. The main difference (as the name indicates) is the size. Big Browns weigh in around 14–21 gr with a forearm length exceeding 48 mm. A Little Brown Bat weighs in at 5.5–12 gr with a forearm length of 36–40 mm.
Ontario’s largest bat species is the Hoary Bat with an average weight of 26 gr.
Bats in your home
It is important to note that you should not attempt to remove a bat colony from your home during the winter or early spring because that will cause certain death for the whole colony. If you need a colony of bats removed you best hire a reputable wildlife removal company to do the job.
During the cold winter months bats in Ontario should be hibernating, however there are some reasons that might cause a hibernating bat to be awake. These reasons vary from a disturbance, temperature fluctuation or rabies.
Being woken up from hibernation is lethal for a bat if they don’t get the right kind of assistance. Their energy reserves are depleted and they require hydration and nourishment, neither of which they will find outdoors durning the winter. The process of waking costs them enough energy that they will die if they simply go back to sleep and don’t receive sustenance and care.
Bats and rabies
Each year there is bats who test positive for rabies in this province. The exact number of bats with rabies is unknown because testing only occurs when there has been a bat/human or bat/domestic animal interaction. Rabies is most often transmitted through saliva in an open wound. Rabies is almost always lethal and any mammal can contract it. The incubation period for rabies in bats is unknown. Unlike other mammal species it remains undetermined.
One needs to be extremely cautious if a bat is found awake during winter months. It is important to never handle a bat with bare hands. Their teeth are small and a good pair of leather gloves will protect your hands adequately.
How you can help
A better method to contain a bat is using a disposable type plastic container. Put the container over the bat and slide the lid underneath. Now you can close the lid without ever having touched the bat. Adding some paper towel to the container prior to putting it over the bat will give the bat something to snuggle down into. Make sure you don’t forget to add some air holes to the container.
If the bat is flying around stepping into the flight path while suspending a towel between your (gloved) hands has a fairly high success rate. After which you can insert the towel into a box or container.
Bats are very tiny and they are excellent escape artists and so it is important to tape up all cracks and corners of a box, but again make sure to make some small air holes.
Who to contact
What you should do with a bat you caught in your home depends on some circumstances. If the bat was found in a bedroom, or some type of human/bat interaction is suspected or confirmed the local health unit needs to be contacted. The bat likely needs to be send for rabies testing. To test for rabies a bat needs to be euthanized and the brain of the bat examined.
A bat flying around in a bedroom puts human lives at risk. Their teeth are so small that if they bite it won’t wake you nor will you find much evidence of a bite on your body. a bat bite mark much resemble an injection with a hypodermic needle.
If domestic animal/bat interaction is suspected or confirmed you need to contact the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture.
If there has been no suspected or confirmed contact with the bat in your home than please contact a your local human society, SPCA, Animal Control Agency or your local Wildlife Custodian.
A Wildlife Custodian is able to provide the care a bat needs until spring when the bat will be released back in to the wild.
You can find a list of Authorized Wildlife Custodians on the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry website.