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Bats common in Michigan are insectivorous, catching small flying insects, by echolocation. Some bats may consume up to one-half their weight of insects in a night. Two of the most common building dwellers are:

The big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus), also found in buildings, may fill its stomach in 1 h. Gould (1955) found that an adult accumulated food at a rate of 2.7 g/h. Seven orders of insects, including beetles and stinkbugs, are eaten (Phillips 1966). Many of the insects reported are harmful.

The little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) commonly found in buildings, feeds on midges, mosquitoes, caddis flies, moths, and beetles. One study found 140 mosquitoes and other insects in the stomach of a single little brown bat (Bellwood and Fenton 1976; Anthony and Kunz 1977). Tuttle (1979b) stated “that 500 bats can easily capture 500,000 insects a night.”

Research has shown that the Little Brown Bat feeds on soft-bodied insects such as moths, flies, midges, mosquitoes and mayflies. The Big Brown Bat appears to be an opportunistic feeder, and preys mostly upon beetles, such as ground beetles, cucumber beetles, and other beetles, moths and larger insects.

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Bats are non-aggressive and will not attack you. Although Bats are beneficial as a natural pest control, the risk of rabies transmission is very real from an infected bat. Bats are wild animals and should be treated as such. Never handle any wild animal. If you are scratched, or bitten by a bat, or if you are unsure, seek immediate medical attention. If you have a bat inside, remain calm and watch where it lands. Take a coffee can and slowly approach and place over the bat. Slide the can over a piece of cardboard and release the bat outdoors. Or, close off room and open windows and turn off ceiling fans and AC (bats follow air flow).

At Bat Masters we want our Bats to continue their pest control efforts without interfering with your home or work life. We may love them, but we don’t want to live with them. There are No Safe Deterrents which we are aware of. Installing a Bat House without first performing Removal and Exclusion will most likely not cause the Bats to move from where they presently roost in your home or building.