I know bats eat 600 mosquitoes an hour, which makes them good. However, in our new house, bats come out like WILD at dusk, swooping around just over our heads, etc. Do they pose any dangers (even swooping into us?). Please answer quickly, since I'm not sure how long I can keep up this brave act in front of the kids!!!
2006-07-17
16:01:03
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17 answers
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asked by
Wondering
4
in
Science & Mathematics
➔ Zoology
BTW, they are in the trees in my back yard, not inside the house.
2006-07-17
16:07:25 ·
update #1
As long as the bats are not in your house, they pose no danger to you. They will not get caught in your hair, and they will keep populations of flying insects down in your vicinity (although their mosquito fighting ability is probably somewhat exaggerated).
Although it is potentially possible for bats to carry rabies, they very very rarely do. When mammals catch rabies, there are two forms, generally called 'dumb' rabies, in which the animal simply holes up somewhere feeling awful and dies there, and 'furious', in which the animal becomes insanely aggressive and attacks anything that comes near it. On the rare occasions that bats do get rabies, they usually get the 'dumb' form, and go curl up and die somewhere quiet and out of the way.
There have been only two cases of rabies in North America linked to bats in the past thirty years, and both of those links are exceedingly tenuous. One was a man who contracted rabies, and reported seeing bats in his lake cabin a year before - so the doctors decided it must have come from bats. The other was a young girl who contracted rabies, and had no easily established vector, so the doctors somehow decided that bats must have snuck into her room at night and bit her without ever being seen or leaving any other evidence.
Unfortunately, bats got a reputation as rabies carriers back in the 1930's when a team of researchers found that bats could carry rabies without getting ill themselves. The story was spread in newspapers all over the globe, but no one ever publicized the follow-up in which they discovered that the virus the bats had was not rabies at all, but a related virus that also happens to be harmless to humans as well.
You are FAR more likely to get rabies from skunks, foxes, raccoons, cats, and especially dogs than you ever would from a bat. For one thing, bats rarely come into contact with other mammals that could spread the disease to them.
So enjoy your swirling, bug-eating swarm of cute, fuzzy children of the night. Just don't let them set up shop in your attic.
2006-07-17 18:25:55
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answer #1
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answered by Anonymous
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Bats are not dangerous. The same sonar that keeps them eating bugs, keeps them from flying into buildings or people.
If bats are "out like crazy" at dusk, you want to check the attic/roof every couple months to make sure there's no access for them to come inside. If they get in the house, their "swoop" method of fling will have them crossing the center of the room, so it would look like they are flying "at you", but they only want to find a way out.
Bats are mammals, with fur, give birth to live babies and nurse them. They are great for pest control.
The only way they'd be a threat is if you found one on the ground or asleep and messed with him then. And then he'd only bite in self-defense.
also, bat guano is one of the single best, nutrient-rich fertilizers in the world.
2006-07-17 16:09:52
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answer #2
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answered by Anonymous
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Bats are not dangerous and do not bite people UNLESS the bats carry rabies. It would be best to get an exterminator out there just in case.
2006-07-17 16:04:59
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answer #3
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answered by physandchemteach 7
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I don't think bats are really dangerous UNLESS you come into direct contact with them or their droppings which can be dangerous. they won't bother you if you don't bother them. some species of bats are protected (depending on where in the world you live) so DO NOT do what that SICK IDIOT The Pain did... bats have as much right to live in the world as we do... they're awesome... (and sort of cute)
2014-07-05 07:23:42
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answer #4
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answered by ? 3
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Bats can carry infectious disease. Rabies if bitten or scratched. Bats dropping can cause a serious respiratory illness.
You should get the animal control people out there to take care of it very soon.
Whatever you do, don't try to clean the nest out by yourself. Have a trained professional do it.
2006-07-17 16:06:06
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answer #5
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answered by tkquestion 7
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bats are not dangerous...they are a natural part of the environment....please do not get and exterminator....besides it is against the law to have them exterminated anyway. They CANNOT get tangled in your hair...an old wives tale!! Yes, it can be quite disturbing when they are whooshing around your head...but they know where you are in relation to them and should not "crash" into you. Yes, they can carry rabies, but as long as you are not picking them up and handling them, they are not going to bite you! Wish I had bats in my yard!
2006-07-17 17:21:41
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answer #6
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answered by Anonymous
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if they are just around at dusk, go somewhere else until they have cleared out. if you have any physical contact with a bat, see a doctor immediately, because you will need rabies shots. the best way is to avoid them.
2006-07-17 16:45:02
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answer #7
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answered by bad guppy 5
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Well, they can get tangled in your hair, but they don't pose any SERIOUS threat. I've never actually seen this happen...only heard warnings of it. I'm just kinda creeped out by them, so I don't stay out when they are out at night. They could also have rabies, but I've never heard of a bat biting someone.
2006-07-17 16:05:29
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answer #8
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answered by Anonymous
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At first I didn't know if you meant the kind you swing or the kind that take a swing at you. Bats can be a carrier of rabies. They have terrible eyesight, but use a type of 'radar' to see...I would be careful, but, they are nothing to be terrified of.
2006-07-17 16:07:12
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answer #9
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answered by Anonymous
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Some bats do carry rabies, and their feces can be troublesome if they nest in your attic in large numbers. The feces can cause histoplasmosis, which affects the retina of the human eyes.
Hope this helps.
2006-07-17 16:07:03
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answer #10
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answered by fenx 5
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