bat palace

[roger wiegand]

This week's project was not exactly fine woodworking, but with the encouragement of SWMBO I finally built a bat house for our meadow. In the spirit of "if it's worth doing it's worth overdoing" I constructed fairly palatial establishment. Design is the four chamber nursery house from Merlin Tuttle's "Bat House Builder's Handbook", with two mounted back to back to provide a range of temperatures. Getting it up in the air was challenging.


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[John K Jordan]

This week's project was not exactly fine woodworking, but with the encouragement of SWMBO I finally built a bat house for our meadow. In the spirit of "if it's worth doing it's worth overdoing" I constructed fairly palatial establishment. Design is the four chamber nursery house from Merlin Tuttle's "Bat House Builder's Handbook", with two mounted back to back to provide a range of temperatures. Getting it up in the air was challenging.


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That's wonderful! The bats need all the help they can get. After being absent for a while bats started coming around the farm here again last year.

[Lee Schierer]

Nice project, be sure to let us know if/when you get bats.

[John K Jordan]

Nice project, be sure to let us know if/when you get bats.

I've been "planning" to build a pair like that for years now. Maybe I'll finally do it.

One book cautioned that it might be a couple of years before bats found the house and moved in.

I have a PDF copy of that same bat house builder's handbook Roger referenced. It used to be available for free download at batcon.org but I see it's not now. It's supposed to be for sale at the Univ of Texas but they say it's out of print and not available. https://utpress.utexas.edu/books/tutb2p
I see the handbook is available on Amazon but some are asking insane prices, $500-$1000 for what was a free publication. Worse than trying to buy hand sanitizer.

Some info here: http://www.batcon.org/resources/gett...t-houses/build

There was an excellent short article with plans in American Woodworker, August 1995, pg 48/49
I don't have that issue now but I did save the article.
I see Google Books has it:
https://books.google.com/books?id=u_...201995&f=false

JKJ

[Frederick Skelly]

Roger, what does attracting bats do for you? Do they keep insects down or something?
Fred

[Jim Becker]

Roger, what does attracting bats do for you? Do they keep insects down or something?
Fred

Bats are VORACIOUS eaters of mosquitos and other pests...they are a major benefit to have around and keep happy.

[Mel Fulks]

The bats did great work around here on the mosquitos , then they got some kind of "white nose disease" that killed
a lot of them. I remember reading about an experiment with bats. They filled a room with a wire maze of sorts, had just
enough room between the wires for bats to get through. Had a light or buzzer that turned on if they hit one. They didn't
hit them!

[roger wiegand]

The builders handbook is still available for free from Tuttle's website: https://www.merlintuttle.org/bat-hou...ders-handbook/

In addition to what Jim said about their practical benefits, they are fascinating critters! We've done a lot to destroy their habitat, a little bit of help for them seems reasonable.

I'm unfortunately aware that it may take a while to get bats, I wanted to get it up ASAP because now is when they choose roosting sites here. I was disappointed that no one had moved in overnight.

[John K Jordan]

The builders handbook is still available for free from Tuttle's website: https://www.merlintuttle.org/bat-hou...ders-handbook/

In addition to what Jim said about their practical benefits, they are fascinating critters! We've done a lot to destroy their habitat, a little bit of help for them seems reasonable.

I'm unfortunately aware that it may take a while to get bats, I wanted to get it up ASAP because now is when they choose roosting sites here. I was disappointed that no one had moved in overnight.

I love to watch them cavort over the fields at the farm here, especially when there are 5 or 6. We also used to feed them - catch some moths or other bugs and shoot them up with a slingshot or throw them out a 2nd story window at our previous house.

JKJ

[roger wiegand]

I love to watch them cavort over the fields at the farm here, especially when there are 5 or 6. We also used to feed them - catch some moths or other bugs and shoot them up with a slingshot or throw them out a 2nd story window at our previous house.

JKJ

That's wonderful! Would love to be able to do that. We're not real close to water (perhaps 1500 ft, much closer to wetland (like the bottom end of the meadow), so they may take some enticing. I have an old sunken foundation, about 9x9 ft that I'm going to put a plastic liner in and try to create a tiny pond. I don't know if that will be enough to interest them.

My other interest is trying to generate a source of mud so the barn swallows who used to nest here when there were horses might come back. (and to encourage the orchard mason bees) There's a big herd of deer and if they use it for a watering hole that should generate mud.

[John K Jordan]

That's wonderful! Would love to be able to do that. We're not real close to water (perhaps 1500 ft, much closer to wetland (like the bottom end of the meadow), so they may take some enticing. I have an old sunken foundation, about 9x9 ft that I'm going to put a plastic liner in and try to create a tiny pond. I don't know if that will be enough to interest them.

My other interest is trying to generate a source of mud so the barn swallows who used to nest here when there were horses might come back. (and to encourage the orchard mason bees) There's a big herd of deer and if they use it for a watering hole that should generate mud.

Many of bats I see are in above my horse pasture with no water nearby. One field has a little mudhole at the bottom and they do dive bomb it.

Do you have a tractor, skid steer, or a 4wd truck? Those can stir up huge amounts of mud in a low spot!

[Curt Harms]

Article from a local source.

https://heritageconservancy.org/heri...nose-syndrome/

[Mel Fulks]

Curt ,thanks for posting
The article has some good news, says the bats have been DECIMATED! That means 90 percent are still alive !

[Adam Herman]

great work.

we opted for one of these. its been up one full season, hopefully we will have some move in this year. it can take several years for them to find the house. we love to watch teh bats at dusk around our fruit trees.

https://batmanagement.com/products/u...mium-bat-house

[Curt Harms]

Curt ,thanks for posting
The article has some good news, says the bats have been DECIMATED! That means 90 percent are still alive !

If only. I don't know if there are ANY bats left there.