Florida is home to a lot of bats. The climate is just right for them, and there are many food sources and places to roost. However, this also means that bats and people may interact on a fairly regular basis, especially when someone’s home provides everything that the bat is looking for.
Here in Florida, bats will happily eat insects as well as fruit and nectar. Many people are happy to have fruit bearing trees in their yards as well as flowers that produce pollen and nectar. Insects are everywhere, so there are a lot of places that bats can get their food. If you start to see a lot of fruit that looks as though it has been eaten, bats may be the culprits. This may not bother you initially, but it may mean the bats decide to start roosting nearby, in that very tree, or unfortunately, in your home if they can discover a way inside.
Are Bats in My House?
If you happen to see one bat flapping around in a room in your house, chances are that somehow it got in by accident and now wants nothing more than to get back outside. Simply open a door and the bat will eventually find its way out – don’t chase it because that will frighten it and it will take longer to leave since it will be attempting to avoid you rather than discover an exit.
But if you notice two or more bats hanging around your home, hear noises coming from your attic or roof area, and notice increasing amounts of guano around your home or even when investigating your attic, chances are there are bats living in your home. This is even more likely if there are food and water resources nearby.
What Do I Do?
First, never try to handle a bat yourself and never use bare hands. Bats do carry diseases like rabies, but even a bat that is not infected with rabies will still bite if it feels threatened. If you suspect that bats are living in your home, you should contact a wildlife control company and let them examine your property to find out if bats are indeed living there, how many, and what can be done to move them out.
Professional pest control companies in Florida deal with bats all the time so they will know the best methods to use for your home and the bats in your area. When they have moved them out, they can also provide you with information on how to exclude bats from your location in the future so you don’t have to worry about dealing with them again. This can mean blocking holes and gaps in your home, cleaning up any standing water that might attract them, as well as other measures. If you have questions, don’t hesitate to ask your pest control technician as they can help you save a lot of money in the future when it comes to bat issues.