Remember baby bat time – June, July and August
Under Oregon law (ORS 635-435-0010) you can’t remove or exclude bats during June, July and August, to protect immobile pups (baby bats) that may be present.
Unless it can be shown that the bats are not raising young at the roost and an exception is provided by ODFW, WCOs will not be able to help during this sensitive biological time period.
Bats inside buildings that are NOT roosting, hibernating or tending nurseries can be captured year-round. Just be sure you release them immediately outside or take them to a licensed wildlife rehabilitator.
Unless it can be shown that the bats are not raising young at the roost and an exception is provided by ODFW, WCOs will not be able to help during this sensitive biological time period.
Bats inside buildings that are NOT roosting, hibernating or tending nurseries can be captured year-round. Just be sure you release them immediately outside or take them to a licensed wildlife rehabilitator.
Oregon's native bats
Oregon is home to 15 species of bats. The three you're most likely to encounter are:
- The little brown bats (Myotis spp.)
- Big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus)
- Brazillian free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis)
Other Oregon natives include hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus), silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans), pallid bat (Antrozous pallidus), Townsend's big-eared bat (Plecotus townsendii), canyon bat (Pipistrellus hesperus) and spotted bat (Euderma maculatum).
Bats are in decline
Not only are bats the only mammals that can fly but they are good for the good for the critical components of a healthy environment. They pollinate plants and control pests such as mosquitoes!
But more than half of North American bats are at risk mostly due to climate change, habitat loss, disease, pollution, and development. Eight out of 15 of Oregon's bat species are listed as State Sensitive. And with recent documentation of white-nose syndrome near the border of Oregon, it is possible that we could see our bat populations plunge further.
Bat research has been a high priority for ODFW and we've been supporting the Northwest Bat Hub to collect data needed to successfully manage the species in partnership with other state and federal agencies throughout the region. However, funding is needed to continue research on bats and to implement best management practices to protect them.
And it's not just in Oregon that bat species are in decline. In North America, scientists estimate 53 percent of bat species are at moderate to very high risk of extinction within 15 years.
Source: The Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
10 fun facts about Oregon bats
- Oregon's bats eat only insects. An adult bat eats about 1,000 insects every hour! They actually chase insects in the air, not just bump into them.
- Bats hang upside down because it gives them an ideal position for take-off.
- Bats sleep during the day and rest during the night in roosts.
- Bats can fly 20 to 30 miles an hour and travel more than 100 miles a night.
- A baby bat is called a pup. Young bats start flying between two and five weeks old.
- Bats are the only flying mammal. Like all mammals, bats have warm blood and hair. They bear live young and nurse them with milk.
- Wings make bats look bigger than they really are. The biggest bat in Oregon is the hoary bat, which weighs about an ounce, or about the same as five quarters.
- Most of Oregon's bats hibernate during the winter in caves, abandoned mines, buildings and hollow trees.
- Bats have few natural enemies (owls are one) and may live as long as 30 years. You may not realize bats are naturally abundant mammals, because you rarely see them.
- Bats have small, movable thumbs on the top of their wings for grasping and climbing. Their back feet are used for hanging.
Header image: Pregnant little brown bats huddle together in "maternity colonies" to conserve warmth, as they are unable to regulate their body temperature. Photo courtesty of the National Park Service.
