Bat House Forum

[Terry Lobdell]

Erik, Joe, Here in PA we are to contact the game commission when finding all downed bats. A ban has been placed on all bat rehab here in PA for the time being.

So far, my numbers of little browns are down slightly, but we have had many cool nights with few insects flying so I know that is a factor. WNS is about 200 miles away from me in central PA. I'm guessing by next year I may see a real decline in my numbers of little browns unless some kind of mircacle happens.....

Tuesday, June 9th I am going to Oil Creek State Park where there are about 1200 little browns. I will be able to tell more then by how much guano is under the bat houses there.

[Terry Lobdell]

Checked these boxes last night and am guessing I've got 250 - 300 little browns using these 2 and 3 other boxes close by........This colony has grown each year.........I think eventually I could get 1,000 bats here. I hate to think of what's to come with wns........Somehow I think some bats will be resistant and we bat house enthusiasts can help populations recover...........

[Dave Miller]

Checked these boxes last night and am guessing I've got 250 - 300 little browns using these 2 and 3 other boxes close by........This colony has grown each year.........I think eventually I could get 1,000 bats here. I hate to think of what's to come with wns........Somehow I think some bats will be resistant and we bat house enthusiasts can help populations recover...........

I wonder about that too. Around here (west of the Cascades in the PNW), some little browns stay in attics in the winter, and even wake up and feed if we get a warm spell. I would guess that attics may be less susceptible to WNS since they get warm now and then even in the winter? i.e. bats in attics may experience less mortality than bats in caves? But that is just a guess. I imagine we will find out eventually.

[Terry Lobdell]

Dave, big brown bats do that same thing here in NWPA.........so hopefully there will be pockets of bats that survive.........and all that we have learned in the past few years will be of some use in helping populations recover......