Bats… 🦇 in the house!

bobbysands81

Came home from being away for 5 days to find a bat asleep on the floor of our bathroom.

The bat was hidden behind a bin and wedged between it and the bath. I thought the bat was dead but touched the bin off it slightly to move it slightly and it made a sort of digital bleeping noise. A couple of other (very gentle) prods with a brush handle and the same noises with a bit of movement but still firmly on the floor.

I tried throwing a towel over it but it moved a bit and tried to start flying getting a foot or so off the floor but ending back up on the floor again on other side of room. I opened the Velux window and turned off the light.

5 minutes later the bat was gone. I have searched the room (small bathroom) and can’t find it so I’m presuming it flew out the window. However, there is a cracked tile at floor level that it could possibly have crawled in behind. Is it more likely to fly out the Velux window (6 foot above floor level) or crawl into the crack behind the door?

However, the really strange thing is that there was nobody in the house from Thursday evening until late Monday night when I spotted the bat asleep on the floor. The window would have been open on Thursday evening for a very short time so if the bat flew in the window it did so on Thursday… unless it had access to the bathroom some other way. Would the bat have survived so long without food and would it take a while to wake up when prodded?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058318549/bats-in-the-house

It could be he was hibernating? that could explain why it took so long to rouse. Possibly came inside for warmth, they’re not too disimilar to rodents insofar as they can squeeze into a tight space. Even down the chimney would be plenty of room!

Is possible it left it may also still be hiding but if you haven’t encountered it since it prob flew off after being prodded a few times.

Careful handling them though they can and will bite you.

PaybackPayroll

A few years ago I found a bat hanging upside down from a wall inside my house. I have no idea how it got in as no windows were open.

I thought it was quite a fascinating creature to look at up close. What surprised me the most was that it was totally silent in flight. Was expecting scooby-doo style flapping noise.

chooseusername

They can’t fly off the ground, so they try to climb high enough to fly. Check any curtains etc.

or call “catcHimDerry”;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gN3Msg5DpEQ

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121249529#Comment_121249529

I also find bats strangely fascinating, probably because they're mammals and look more like cats and dogs than birds maybe

Still, I probably wouldn't get too close to one

I could be wrong but I think the almost silent flight is an evolved defence mechanism to make it harder for birds of prey to hunt them. Some owls use hearing primarily to track prey

It could also be to avoid interfering with their own hearing. Not all bats use echolocation, some actually have good eyesight. But I think good hearing is almost universal across bat species