As the roof is repaired on the Old School, the Denman Conservancy will be reviewing necessary steps to retain the valuable summer maternal colony of bats that uses the attic to raise their young. This large and successful nursery habitat for at least three bat species, has been essential to maintaining the bats for many decades. These bats who forage nightly for their weight in bugs are certainly doing gardeners, recreationists and other outside workers a tremendous service. The little brown bat has been shown to consume as many as 600 mosquito’s in one hour. With bat lifespans potentially as long as 40+ years, these animals know the Old School and adjacent Central Park area well. As they hibernate, we will be working to improve the attic for the bats and to keep their area separate from those of the humans.
There are two major health concerns associated with bats; rabies and histoplasmosis. Rabies is a virus that is fatal if untreated. This virus is found in the infected animals’ saliva and is typically transmitted by a bite or through an open wound. Most bat bites are undetected. If you find a bat in a room that someone has slept in, you should have that bat tested for rabies through the Local Health Department. If the bat cannot be collected for testing, do not take a chance, you should have the rabies exposure shots administered by a doctor. For more information go to: http://www.cdc.gov/rabies/ . Histoplasmosis is a fungus that grows on bird and bat droppings that can be fatal to humans. When the droppings are disturbed this fungus becomes air-borne and can be introduced into the body through your lungs and tear ducts. Droppings that are in dead spaces, like wall voids and soffits, typically will not cause any problems other than odor. Accumulations of droppings found in areas accessible to humans, like attics and crawl spaces, pose a threat to human health and should be removed. For more information go to: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/hi97146.html . Do not attempt to remove bat droppings yourself. Without the proper masks with filters, suites, air scrubbers and vacuums you could infect yourself and others. See our Guano Removal section for more details.
In response to the above comment that this website received from Bobbie Mullins we wish to remind Denman residents of issues we have raised previously and to continue to be aware of the disease risks on Denman.
Rabies in bats, while very rare, is of concern, as is rabies in other animals in the rest of Canada. One should always be aware and take precautions. Wild animals should not be approached or handled without appropriate protection and proper skills, particularly if they are behaving strangely. The health department recommendation for anyone having slept in a room exposed to a free-ranging bat, to seek advice and possible treatment, is a justifiable precaution.
Histoplasmosis in bat, chicken, pigeon or other bird feces has not been identified as a problem in British Columbia. This is a disease of hot humid areas and has not been diagnosed in B.C.
Feces, particularly mice feces, in enclosed spaces, can be a problem for other reasons, such as Hanta virus. Considerable caution should be taken in clearing up feces to prevent respiratory or contact exposure.
J. Balke DVM