WNJ Exclusive: Drowned bat in Union County
Photos by Jillian Weislo
I never really knew there were bats living in my suburban backyard until about a week ago. I got home and while cleaning my pool noticed something brown floating towards the top of the water. I scooped it out and it turned out to be a dead bat.
The cause of its death is unknown, but was probably from drowning while trying to drink or catch an insect. It is unlikely that it was White-Nose Syndrome as there was no obvious white fungus on the muzzle or body.
After seeing the photos, a wildlife biologist suggested that it could be an eastern red bat from the tint of the fur. Red bats are pretty common forest bats in areas with a lot of trees, and are among the larger New Jersey species along with big brown bats.
I decided to look up some ways to prevent this from happening again - not only to bats but other backyard critters, such as squirrels or frogs. If bats do swoop into a pool, they can swim for a short time but will drown if there is no way for them to get out. An escape device is available from sites, such as Frog Log, that provides an easy route out of swimming pools for wildlife.
You can also help bats and other wildlife by providing safe drinking water in troughs or bird baths. White-Nose Syndrome is really decimating bats in the Northeast, so any little help we can provide is well worth the trouble.
Follow these links to learn more about bats and White-Nose Syndrome:
NorthJersey.com: Fungus kills off 90% of N.J. bats
Newjerseynewsroom.com: Calling all New Jersey bat lovers
Philly.com: Solving the mystery of the dying bats in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania
ESRI.com: Mapping the Spread of White-Nose Syndrome with GIS
Wild New Jersey Exclusive: A night at Bat Wing Farm
The cause of its death is unknown, but was probably from drowning while trying to drink or catch an insect. It is unlikely that it was White-Nose Syndrome as there was no obvious white fungus on the muzzle or body.
After seeing the photos, a wildlife biologist suggested that it could be an eastern red bat from the tint of the fur. Red bats are pretty common forest bats in areas with a lot of trees, and are among the larger New Jersey species along with big brown bats.
I decided to look up some ways to prevent this from happening again - not only to bats but other backyard critters, such as squirrels or frogs. If bats do swoop into a pool, they can swim for a short time but will drown if there is no way for them to get out. An escape device is available from sites, such as Frog Log, that provides an easy route out of swimming pools for wildlife.
You can also help bats and other wildlife by providing safe drinking water in troughs or bird baths. White-Nose Syndrome is really decimating bats in the Northeast, so any little help we can provide is well worth the trouble.
Follow these links to learn more about bats and White-Nose Syndrome:
Posted by WILDNEWJERSEY at 8/12/2010 10:00 AM 
Categories: WNJ Exclusives, Bats
Tags: red bats bats frogs big brown bats eastern red bats union swimming pools
Categories: WNJ Exclusives, Bats
Tags: red bats bats frogs big brown bats eastern red bats union swimming pools
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