Bats Enjoy an Unusually Warm Fall in South Cariboo – 100 Mile House Free Press

The bats of the South Cariboo go into hibernation after an unseasonably warm fall.

Martin Kruus, Cariboo’s regional bat coordinator for the BC Community Bats Program, said the warm days and nights meant flying insects were active well into October this year. Usually bats are only active from April to September.

“They go into hibernation further south in the province, in the Thompson Okanagan region, and will go into caves and mines,” Kruus said. “Sometimes a single one hangs around, especially this fall.”

That year, Kruus said he delayed the Cariboo’s bat counts due to the cool spring and lack of bats. He said they try to count the bats before they have their pups.

“I think the lack of major heat waves in the southern and central Cariboo has been a good thing for bats. There was a healthy mosquito population and there was no early frost or big heat wave to kill bugs.”

As part of his role, Kruus is used to answering questions about bats from across the Cariboo. He said of the 17 species that make BC their home, three are regularly found around 100 Mile House and Williams Lake.

Kruus said the most common bat is the little brown myotis, an endangered species of mouse-eared microbat. An adult bat grows to the size of a human thumb and can weigh as little as six grams, he said. They live up to 30 years and feed mainly on mosquitoes.

“They’re really good at keeping unwanted bug populations down.”

The big brown bat is the second most common. It tends to be larger than its smaller cousin, weighing up to 26 grams with a light brown coat color. Kruus said they prefer slightly larger spaces to sleep in, like barns and houses.

Kruus said the rarest bat in the Cariboo is the spotted bat, known for its spotted fur and huge ears. The spotted bat’s echolocation calls are audible to the human ear, which is unusual.

They can only be found near Fox Mountain and Bull Canyon near Alexis Creek. Kruus said spotted bats prefer vertical cliffs when they sleep, and no locations have been found near 100 Mile House yet.

However, the little brown bat and the big brown bat definitely make the South Cariboo their home.

“We have bat enthusiasts (who monitor them) at Sheridan Lake, 70 Mile House and Forest Grove. Because there’s so much water, there’s a lot of flying insects, which is pretty good habitat for bats,” Kruus said. “These species of bats have to live fairly close to water. They emerge at sunset and fly to the water to rehydrate and then go bug hunting.”

While the bats are now hibernating, Kruus says steps can still be taken to make living with them easier. If bats are sleeping in your barn or house and you don’t want them there, he said he can help build a bat box nearby that will encourage them to move. These crates are painted black and have south-facing openings to facilitate migration.

Kruus hosted a bat box workshop in Williams Lake in October and plans to host another in Quesnel in November. He said the South Cariboo is overdue and plans to organize one in spring or fall of 2023.

Meanwhile, Kruus asks the community to keep an eye out for lone bats, especially if they appear in winter and are white-nosed.

He said he monitors white nose syndrome, which has been found in Washington state but not BC

“White-nose syndrome is not harmful to humans at all, but it grows on bats’ bodies when they hibernate. It irritates her like having an itchy rash. It wakes them up and makes them expend more energy while they hibernate, and because they’re relatively light creatures, they run out of energy sooner and can’t go back to eating.”

If you notice any unusual bat behavior or find a dead bat, Kruus said the public can report it at bcbats.ca

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