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Evelyn Kirkwood is Director of St. Joseph County Parks in Indiana. She and her husband enjoy flying their delta kites on blustery March days.

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Bats (and other critters) on the move
Written by Evie Kirkwood

Bats in February? You might only think of bats in warm weather, but each year in late winter, I get calls at the park from families who have found a wayward bat in their living room. Many species of bats, such as big and little brown bats, hibernate together in winter in large groups called colonies. Others, like the Eastern Pipistrelle, roost by themselves. Bats find a place where the temperature stays above freezing. Sometimes that’s a cave in southern Indiana or an abandoned mine in northern Michigan. A perfect place for big or little brown bats might be your attic or anywhere the temperature is slightly above freezing most of the time.

For some species, there are only a few roosts for all the individuals of that species. For example, most endangered Indiana bats winter in only seven caves and mines in Missouri, Indiana and Kentucky. This means that large numbers of this bat species are vulnerable to a catastrophe, such as careless cave explorers disturbing the bats during hibernation.

All the bats that live in our region feed on insects. Bats hibernate because there are no flying insects for them to dine on in winter. Without food, they conserve energy by going into a deep sleep, slowing their heart rate and breathing, and lowering their body temperature. If bats are disturbed during hibernation, they waste precious energy warming up as they become alert. If they have to search for a new hibernation site they may use 10 to 30 days worth of fat reserves in a few minutes. If they are disturbed too often, they run out of stored energy and starve before spring. If you know of a place where bats are hibernating, please don’t disturb them.

Sometimes during a winter thaw, bats that were hibernating in your basement, attic or crawl space move around. Suddenly you might discover a little brown bat in your living room! Usually they are pretty sluggish because their metabolism is so slow.

If you find a bat

To get them to a safe location, put on some leather gloves and place an empty can, bowl or butter tub over the animal. Slide a piece of cardboard under the can and return the bat in the bowl to your chilly attic or garage. You could place the bat outside if the forecast is above freezing for a few days, but if it’s very cold, the bat will use too much energy locating a new place to hibernate, and it could die.

Did you know?

Mammalogists (scientists that study mammals, such as bats), rescue misplaced bats in winter by storing them in their refrigerator!

Watch for hibernators waking up!

To survive winter, some animals hibernate; others take extended naps and are inactive during severe weather. The state of short term inactivity is called torpor. Animals in torpor wake up and move about during mild spells. Often, they are roadside casualties, hit by cars in their sluggish state.

Even though February 2 is Groundhog Day, I usually don’t see my first woodchuck until the end of the month.

Keep a list of the dates you see certain animals in your neighborhood, on your way to work or school. It’s a sign that winter is losing its grip.

Watch for these emerging winter sleepers…

Chipmunks (Napper)

Opossums (Napper)

Skunks (Napper)

Woodchucks, also called ground hogs (True hibernator)

Did you know?

Red winged blackbirds return to our area in mid-to-late February. They are one of the first birds to welcome the end of winter!

Evelyn Kirkwood is Director of St. Joseph County Parks in Indiana and host of Outdoor Elements on WNIT Public Television. The nature show airs Sundays at 9:30 am and Tuesdays at 5:30 pm.

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