MICROBATS are in full flight in Port Macquarie at the moment and now is the time to prevent them from taking up residence in your roof or walls.
The Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife said being proactive was the key to stopping microbats from invading homes.
Chief executive Susanna Bradshaw said building an artificial hollow in your backyard was the best way to prevent problems.
“Port Macquarie microbats are currently in a feeding frenzy as they fatten up on insects to see them through the coming winter,” she said.
“Right now, bats are eating as much as 40 per cent of their own body weight in a single night or several hundred insects per hour.”
“Many of our microbat species are hollow-dependent, which means they live during the daylight hours inside the hollows of trees or branches,” Ms Bradshaw said.
“Competition from birds, possums and gliders, along with the clearing of many old trees, means that microbats may find the roof or walls of your home the perfect roosting place.”
The smallest microbat weighs only 3 grams – about the same as a single serve sugar sachet.
“If these tiny bats cannot find a suitable hollow, they can slip into gaps as small as 5mm and snuggle down in your roof and walls,” Ms Bradshaw said.
“This is why artificial roost sites are important as they provide an alternative that everyone can be happy with.”
Port Macquarie microbats are a fully protected native species, Ms Bradshaw said.
“If you want microbats out of your walls, first provide an alternative roost site outside such as a nest box,” she said.
“Then, if done correctly, your walls can become bat free and the little bats will happily stick around your backyard to go about their insect eating work, which is of great benefit to all of us.”
You can visit www.backyardbuddies.net.au to find how to build your own microbat roost box, and download a free fact sheet about microbats.
