AMHERST SHORE – Did you know bats can eat 600-1,000 mosquitoes an hour? According to Bruce Wood from Sackville, N.B, they can – a good thing to know as you head outside during the summer season to enjoy the evening air.
Wood, who owns a bat removal company in Sackville, recommends people have bat houses on their property to house the creatures and to rid the area of pesky mosquitoes.
“Bat droppings can be very harmful and I wouldn’t want bats living in my house but I would definitely build a barn or something for them to live nearby,” Wood said.
Along with eating mosquitoes, bats are useful for pollination of flowers and dispersing fruit seeds.
The different types of bats found in our region are Mytotis lucifugus (little brown bat), Mytos septentrionalis (Northern long eared bat), Pipistrellus subfiavus (Eastern pipistrelle) and Eptesicus fuscus (big brown bat).
“Bats hibernate, they like to hibernate in caves and abandoned mines but they are like homing pigeons and will return every year,” Wood said.
“Although bat dung or guano (droppings) are harmful to breathe in they are very good for gardens,” Wood said.
“People really need to realize that bats are more helpful than harmful,” Wood said.
Wood also said if people are going to clean up after bats themselves he recommends they at least use a mask.
“I use a ventilator mask when I rid people’s houses of the bats and their guano,” Wood said.
Wood gave a presentation at the Amherst Shore Provincial Park last Saturday to campers at the park and also brought along a couple of the bat houses he sells for people to have a look at.
