Big Brown Bat pups

[hilltopper]

I have an old barn that holds a maternal group of Big Brown Bats. In early June the bats start having their babies (pups). Every year I’ve lived there I’ve come across some pups (5 to 10 per year on average) that have fallen off their mothers while their mothers were at roost in the barn. When I find a pup I put on some leather gloves and grab a screwdriver and a paper cup. I gently guide the bat into the paper cup and use a ladder to climb the pups up some 15 feet to a cross beam in the barn. This brings them closer to the roost where the mother has a better chance of hearing their ultrasonic distress calls, locating them, and retrieving them.

This year, for some reason, has not been a normal year. This year I’ve been keeping track and I have found 44 pups on the barn floor. I would say 1 out of every 5 were dead meaning I’ve found about 35 live pups. They seem to survive the ~35 foot fall quite well. I assume they know enough to spread their wings while falling in order to slow their descent. The ones I find that have not survived either were very small or they landed on their back. They are unable to turn over if they are on their back. Of the ~35 pups that have survived the fall that have been placed up 15 feet up on the cross beam, only three have died. These three were just too small to vocalize so the mother could not hear and locate them. I’m assuming the other 30 were located and retrieved by the mother. I’ve got to believe that I’ve handled some of the pups multiple times. This is because the most bats I’ve counted in the barn is 30. The bats have one pup a year and, 12% of the time, have two. That means that 30 females would produce ~33 pups.

Anyway, sorry about the mini blog. I’ve read that overcrowding and overheating can cause pups to be jostled or weakened to the point of falling, but neither of these scenarios seem pertinent (large barn and not an overly hot June).

So, does anybody out there have a maternal colony that roosts in an outbuilding/barn? Have you found more pups this year than normal? Probably a long shot, but I’m curious and thought I’d throw the questions out there.

[SIKSUKR]

Can't wait to hear the feedback on this one.

[Pineedles]

Hilltopper, you are to be congratulated. Many people are squeamish about bats, but your efforts are commendable. With the white nose disease wiping out entire populations of bats, trying to save a few (35+) is yeoman's work. Keep it up. Sorry I have no feedback on similar colonies.

[Mirror Lake's BB]

Perhaps it is the white-nose syndrome. Here is a link that contains contact information, perhaps they can advise you.

http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/disease_inf...nose_syndrome/

[hilltopper]

Originally Posted by Mirror Lake's BB

Perhaps it is the white-nose syndrome. Here is a link that contains contact information, perhaps they can advise you.

http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/disease_inf...nose_syndrome/

White Nose was my thought when I first started seeing this years ago, but the baby bats and the adult bats roosting show no signs. The syndrome is mainly affecting Little Brown Bats.

My first thought years ago in 2007 was to "dispose" of the bats I found. After doing that the first few times it bothered me enough to call an animal rehabilitator to ask for advice. I was told getting them as close to the roost as you can is the only thing you can do but that if they weren't found within 5 or so hours they would probably die. Only about 10% of the bats put on the cross beam have been found dead. Plus I get a bit of exercise going up and down the extension ladder.

[Rattlesnake Gal]

Hilltopper, thank you for saving these precious pups and also for sharing your story!!! Have you contacted NH Fish and Game? Perhaps it's time to speak to the bat rehabilitator again? It's possible that you are not the only one seeing this. Maybe they will want to come take a look, study and document what is happening. Are you keeping a log of these batty events? Might be very valuable information that could help save other bats. Just a thought.

Imagine how amazing an infrared video could be?!

[Newbiesaukee]

A little off topic..but I loved our bats on Long Island...but they have been totally gone for about 2 years. I assume it is white nose disease . Very sad.

[DRH]

Originally Posted by Newbiesaukee

A little off topic..but I loved our bats on Long Island...but they have been totally gone for about 2 years. I assume it is white nose disease . Very sad.

For the first few years after we bought our first place in West Alton (1994), we had lots of bats... swarms sometimes. We were glad to have them as they eat large quantities of mosquitoes. Then after several years they seemed to disappear, and for over 10 years we didn't see any. Last year we began seeing a few on warm summer nights, and we're hopeful that they can begin to thrive again and help keep the mosquito population down.

[SAMIAM]

Hilltopper,you are a cool guy to go to all that trouble to save those pups.So many people freak at the sight of a bat.We've installed bathouses on our property.....with moderate success and love to watch them flying around chasing mosquitos in the evening.

[lindacms]

Kudos to you Hilltopper, for going to the lengths you have for those stranded pups. I am a wildlife rehabilitator in CT and specialize in bats. I give lectures on bats and white nose syndrome to the general public in CT, NY and MA and also at many of the eastern wildlife rehabilitation conferences. You are correct that intense heat is often a possible cause for pups being found below roosts, however, no one really knows for sure. Some have also listed heavy rains as a possibility, but we're not sure of the reasons that would effect them. Some feel that intense rains may keep the mothers from foraging as often as they may need to, in order to produce enough milk for their pup(s).

Dropped or abandoned pups found over the last few years seems to be increasing, but it has been attributed (by some) to the enlightenment of the public about bats and their plight of white nose syndrome that the pups are being noticed. However, with rescuers who have been monitoring their roosts for years, they claim otherwise and can quite often document their findings.

The best thing for the pups is to try to get them back into the roost, or as close as possible to be reunited with the mothers. Although it is true that the mothers can pick up their babies, estimates by biologists claim that of those that fall from the roost, only about 50% will actually be retrieved by the mothers away from the roost. Bat pups that do not have any fur almost never survive when brought to a rehabilitator, much to my disappointment, but we continually work on improving our protocols to change that.

Most of the pups that are being rescued are big brown bats which are considered to be the heartiest of our eastern species. They can survive temperatures lower than most other species and if kept warm will usually survive overnight quite easily. We have even put the pups out for a second night, if the rescuer can give some oral fluids to the pup safely.

Please continue to try and get these pups back to their roosts, since that is where they have the best chance of survival. I'd also like to recommend visiting my website: www.bats101.info for more information about bats and white nose syndrome. Monitoring your colony is something that you may be able to do while providing valuable information to your state environmental agency along with US Fish & Wildlife, Eastern White Nose Syndrome Coordinator, Christina Kocer.

Thank you for being an advocate of our bats, we need more caring people like you to help us.

[lindacms]

I forgot to mention in my post yesterday about Hilltopper's comment regarding the bats not showing signs of White Nose Syndrome (WNS). Rarely, if ever, will anyone see "signs" of WNS on a bat outside of a cave situation. The fungus, though often visible during winter, is almost always immediately groomed off prior to exiting. The fungus does not survive in temperatures above 60F, so is generally confined to the hibernaculae. What we end up seeing are the results and/or side effects of the fungal infection, ie: wing damage, emaciation and/or severe dehydration in very early spring or midwinter prior to when flying insects are available and often when snow is still on the ground. The fungus (Geomyces destructans) takes advantage of the bat's lowered immune response while it is in hibernation, so that is when the damage starts to become evident.

If a bat has made it to its summer roost, then it is not being affected by WNS at that time. At this point, we do not know how it may or may not have affected the bats (and their reproductive activity) if they did indeed contract the fungus and recuperated from it. We also have not determined whether or not they can build up an immunity to it, however, we do know that when affected bats are found early enough and brought into rehabilitation, that they can survive.

[tis]

Since I found a bat on my neck when I was asleep and therefore had to go through the rabies shots, I am not in love with bats. I know they are good creatures to have around, but I just can't get that warm fuzzy feeling about them. As someone on here says, just sayin'.

[hilltopper]

The last two I've found have been the largest two I've ever found. Almost large enough where I would guess they didn't fall from the roost as much as they failed in their first attempt at flying. The paper cup wan't going to cut it so I used a kids beach bucket. The one last night was flapping its wings and lunging with it's teeth bared. I felt like I was bringing up on the cross beam to give it elevation for another flying attempt as opposed to getting it close to the roost. I didn't see where it ended up but it wasn't on the cross beam for more than two hours before it disappeared.

[ellie12]

So..is there any way to keep them out of your cottage or away from you while you're sleeping??!

[hilltopper]

Originally Posted by ellie12

So..is there any way to keep them out of your cottage or away from you while you're sleeping??!

If you think you have them in your cottage you need to figure out how they're getting in. Stand outside at dusk and try to figure out where they're exiting the cottage. Once you find the spot you need to cover it so when they attempt to reenter they cannot.

Trying the above method in my barn would keep me busy for decades.

[SunsetPointWentworth]

I can't see a bat and not think of that scene in 'The Great Outdoors' with Dan Aykroyd and John Candy. I'm sure most of us have had an experience or two like they did

[ellie12]

I'm not kidding....that's pretty much what we looked like in the middle of the night. Funny clip...I laughed so hard.

[SunsetPointWentworth]

Ellie, When a bat would get inside the house, my Dad would yell " turn off all the lights and open all the doors!" Me and my Sister would be sitting on the couch with nothing, but our eyes poking out from under the blanket. Every few minutes, the little bugger would whip past us and we'd both hit the deck. Good Times.
Hilltopper, Thank you for doing mother nature such a service. I hope you don't take my post's as mocking. They are anything but