Northern California Bats- Home Page

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Our bat removal specialists are ready to assist you with any bat problems or to provide bat solutions for your business or home. We work with most insurance companies and can help you find affordable solutions to your bat problems. Don’t wait any longer to remove bats from your attic, home or business.

ABOUT US

NorCalBats is dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation and release of bats throughout Northern California. In addition, we are committed to public education regarding the environmental benefits of bats and dispelling fears and myths that lead to the death of roosts and colonies.

Contact Information

Northern California Bats
P.O. Box 933
Davis, CA 95617-0933
530-902-1918
inquiry@norcalbats.org

Permits:
California Department of Fish and Game wildlife rehabilitation permit with Wildlife Rehabilitation & Release P.O. Box 868, Penn Valley, CA 95946 530-432-5522
U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Class C Exhibitor Permit

How we rescue bats

If you need a rescue click here

We receive calls from homeowners, veterinary offices, businesses and other wildlife rehabilitation groups. A volunteer retrieves the bat and the animal is evaluated.

Orphaned bats are fed special formula and cared for around the clock until the bat is old enough to fly. It learns to eat insects then joins others in a flight cage to build up its strength. Once ready, it rejoins a wild colony.

Adults may need medication, repair to a broken bone, hydration or other types of care. We work closely with a veterinarian to provide proper treatment. The bat is taught to eat mealworms and given a chance to heal and recuperate. Once it is restored to a condition of good health, it is released to the wild.

If an animal can not be released due to complications that would prevent its success in the wild, it is evaluated for suitability in our education program.

FREQUETELY ASKED QUESTIONS

Question

We have a bat house that doesn't have any bats in it.

Answer

This can be for various reasons. Bats are loyal to their roost, so unless there is a reason to move, they won’t. Reasons include the population becoming too large for their current space, or destruction of the habitat. In the mean time they notice other potential homes, so keep your house up. If they need a place, they will know where to go. It can take a couple of years before the bats move in. Location is the number one factor for bat house success in this part of CA. Also, bat box design is important. The size of the space inside is a key factor. They prefer a space of ¾ inch to 1 inch. Much bigger than this and the bats don’t tend to move in, but the wasps do. They box also needs to be sealed at the seams and painted. This keeps out the drafts and moisture.

Question

What do you feed the bats that you rescue?

Answer

In captivity, the bats are taught to eat meal worms. If the animal is a pup (a baby) when it comes into care we feed it formula. Bats are mammals. Without formula (milk) their bones will not develop properly. Next they graduate to a combination of blended meal worms and formula with other supplements. Many of our bats, both juvenile and adult then get a blended mealworm smoothie. Finally they move on to mealworms. What we feed the mealworms is also very important. My family teases me that I feed the mealworms better food than I feed my kids. They get organic 10 grain cereal, vitamin supplements, various fruits and vegetables, and organic grain bread.

Question

How long do you keep a bat until you release them back into the wild?

Answer

This varies with the bat, why it came into care and the season of the year. Wing injuries can take a very long time to heal, if they ever heal well enough to fly. Some pups gain enough strength by fall to fly, some stay with us over the winter. Sometimes we get bats in mid –winter that were woken from hibernation. These we care for until the weather is good enough and the insect load is high enough. A torn wing will heal fairly quickly, a break can take weeks, infections can also take weeks. Once the bat seems healthy and eats well on its own, it goes to our flight cage were it spends at least a couple of weeks, sometimes a month or more, so it can build up its flight strength. We spend time ensuring that the bats fly and check each one separately prior to release. They must fly well and for an extended period of time to survive in the wild. If they pass the flight test, they are released. If they don’t pass, then we evaluate – do they need more practice or will they never fly well? Bats that can’t fly or have other long term problems stay with us in captivity. Some enter our education program and help children and adults learn about the benefits of bats.

DOCUMENTS

Dispelling flights of fancy about bats
The sharp fangs, pointy devil ears and spooky black vampire wings are staples of Halloween, but the legend of the bloodthirsty bat drives the folks who study the winged creatures batty. Contrary to popular myth, there are no bats in California that suck blood, human or otherwise, said Scott Osborn, an environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish and Game. The tiny, beady-eyed beasts are not blind, either. For that matter, they aren't big spreaders of rabies and, get this, they aren't even rodents. They belong to their own order of Chiroptera.
White-Nose Syndrome: Something is killing our bats
Recommendations for managing white-nose syndrome during the winter of 2009/2010 call for closing human access to caves and mines with bats newly affected with WNS and limiting human access to unaffected caves and mines, all in an area 250 miles beyond caves and mines with bats currently affected with WNS. .
Criteria for Successful Bat House
Whether you build or buy a bat house, make sure the dimensions meet the criteria below. Following these construction and installation guidelines will greatly increase your odds of attracting bats. These recommendations are based on 12 years of bat-house research conducted across the U.S, Canada and the Caribbean. Small, poorly made houses commonly sold in stores or any house improperly installed are likely to fail. Much more information is available in BCI’s Bat House Builder’s Handbook, available online at www.batcatalog.com...
Bats in Buildings: An Information and Exclusion Guide
As primary predators of night-flying insects, bats play a vital role in maintaining the balance of nature. A single little brown bat can catch 1,200 mosquito-sized insects in an hour, and big brown bats are important predators of some of America's most costly crop pests. Cucumber beetles, June beetles, bark beetles, stink bugs, leafhoppers, cutworm moths, corn earworm moths, armyworm moths, termites, assassin bugs, ants, roaches, crickets, and grasshoppers are just some of the many pests known to be consumed by America's bats. Yet, bat populations are in alarming decline due to decades of unwarranted human fear and persecution...
Nursery Bat Box Plan
Single-chamber Bat House Plan (wall mounted)
Yolo County Bat House Study, R.F. Long
Well-placed bat houses can attract bats to Central Valley farms RESEARCH ARTICLE by Rachael F. Long, W. Mark Kiser and Selena B. Kiser In an 8-year study from 1997 to 2004, we evaluated the use of 186 bat houses in rural areas of California’s Central Valley. We considered the bat houses’ size, color, height and location, and found that location was the main factor affecting bat use. Colonies of bats (generally mothers and their young) preferred houses mounted on structures such as buildings, shaded or exposed only to morning sun, and within one-quarter mile of water. In contrast, individual bats (generally males and non reproductive females) were less selective in where they roosted. The overall occupancy rate for bat houses in our study was 48% for colonies and 28% for individual bats. Mexican free-tailed and Myotis bats were the main species using the houses, with occasional sightings of pallid and big brown bats. Bats occupied most houses within the first 2 years of placement...
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LINKS TO OTHER SITES


Bats of San Diego County	Bat Rescue of Southern California
The Barry R. Kirshner Wildlife Foundation is a non-profit organization founded in 1994. It is conveniently located just minutes south of Chico, in Durham. It is the only organization of its kind in California, from the San Francisco Bay Area to the Oregon border.