Are bats dangerous? Please Help!?
I've just started to cycle home from work every night. And on my way home in the dark I see bats flying around. I cant change my route, but I am worried about the threat they pose?
Can anyone help please?
2006-09-12 07:15:26 · 30 answers · asked by tony 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Zoology
No, bats will not hurt you, in fact I suggest you appreciate them a little because they are eating the insects that are flying around you. The bats will not fly in your hair and they will not try to bite or attack you, they are only hunting insects.... it is also unlikely that they will collide with you as thier sonar is very efficient and they are quite agile. I assume some ignorants will also say "they carry rabies!" this can be true but it is rare and bats who have rabies do not experience the aggressive symptoms of other animals, and there has never been a case of a bat with rabies attacking anyone... I suggest you enjoy thier company because the mosquitos they eat are far more dangerous than they are, and also they eat all kinds of other flying insects that may instead feed on you if not for the bats! Next time you are on your bike and you see a bat you might want to say Thanks, guys! for keeping the insects away from you.
2006-09-12 11:54:11 · answer #1 · answered by Kelly + Eternal Universal Energy 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
These bats pose no threat to you; they navigate by sonar- using ultrasonic noises to determine where to fly. They will not get in your hair, they will not attack you, and are quite happy flying about and leaving you alone. Even when caving, I've yet to have a bat hit me- and that's in some very tiny spaces. These guys know how to navigate.
A bat on the ground is another matter; a bat found on the ground is likely to be ill, possibly from rabies. A very small number of bats carry rabies, and bats are capable of surviving rabies, unlike humans. Most of the bats in North America have very small teeth, and it takes quite an effort for them to bite you such that they break the skin. Do not touch bats on the ground.
In short, don't worry about the bats in the air; they won't hurt you- and they don't want to mess with you. They know exactly where you are, and will happily leave you alone.
2006-09-12 14:20:57 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Despite the legends, bats (Desmodus species) are a relatively small hazard to the survivor. There are many bat varieties worldwide, but you find the true vampire bats only in Central and South America. They are small, agile fliers that land on their sleeping victims, mostly cows and horses, to lap a blood meal after biting their victim. Their saliva contains an anticoagulant that keeps the blood slowly flowing while they feed. Only a small percentage of these bats actually carry rabies; however, avoid any sick or injured bat. They can carry other diseases and infections and will bite readily when handled. Taking shelter in a cave occupied by bats, however, presents the much greater hazard of inhaling powdered bat dung, or guano. Bat dung carries many organisms that can cause diseases. Eating thoroughly cooked flying foxes or other bats presents no danger from rabies and other diseases, but again, the emphasis is on thorough cooking.
2006-09-12 14:21:27 · answer #3 · answered by rltouhe 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Bats flying around you at night are no more dangerous than birds flying around you during the day. If they are swooping near you, be grateful because they are probably catching bugs around you. They can see you perfectly well and they can sense you with their sonar, so they won't hit you. It is a myth that they will get caught in hair. I studied bats in the wild for years and never saw one get caught in anyone's hair.
As for rabies. bats can transmit rabies, but statistically they are no more likely to carry the virus than are foxes, skunks, raccoons. The reason people tend to contract rabies more often from bats is that they are more likely to pick up a sick bat than to touch a sick fox, skunk etc. (If a bat is on the ground, there is something wrong with it! Don't pick it up.
2006-09-12 22:47:28 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Funny, I was just doing a bat watch about two weeks ago, and now a bat question. About 1 % of bats carry rabies, so if bitten then you would want to see your doctor immediately. However, healthy bats, using echo-location to find flying insects to eat, are not going to accidently run into you. They will avoid you just like they would a tree or building.
2006-09-13 10:06:25 · answer #5 · answered by Brian H 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The normal healthy bat is not dangerous and will avoid men. But that bat does carry and suffer from rabies and bedbugs and fleas. Bedbugs are just a misery and fleas can carry deseases like bubonic plague which was real big in the middle ages.
2006-09-12 14:23:02 · answer #6 · answered by ? 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
no they are not dangerouse at all, they actually help by eating insane amount of insects. They can carry rabies, but you would face more danger running into a rabid racoon, possum, or even a dog on the way home. If they fly near you they are just checking you out, they are 100% harmless.
2006-09-12 14:19:16 · answer #7 · answered by Pat 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Most bats eat bugs or fruit, the vampire bat actually does drink blood but you have to be very still for a long time, for they land on very still lying animals like sleeping cows...
2006-09-12 14:19:11 · answer #8 · answered by Doug R 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
only baseball bats can be very dangerous if u get smacked around the head by a bloke who just got out off the pub after drinking 20pints ...lol
2006-09-12 14:44:34 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Unless the bat has rabies, it is no dangerous than a bird.
2006-09-12 14:19:45 · answer #10 · answered by teeniey37 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋