Bats are often portrayed as vicious, scary creatures that spread disease and want to suck your blood. In reality, bats are largely non-threatening, nocturnal creatures that attack only when provoked and are actually incredibly beneficial to our ecosystem. Here are some reasons why bats are good for the environment.
Bats Make Great Pest Exterminators
Many bats eat insects as a primary food source — helping to keep bug populations under control. This reduces the number of harsh pesticides used on crops, which is not only good for you but also helps reduce pollution. Bats greatly reduce the number of crops damaged or destroyed by pests. It has been estimated that somewhere between $3.7 and $54 billion worth of pest control services are saved in the United States by bats every year. Bats are known to eat the bugs that attack crops like pecans, rice, cotton, corn, coffee, and tomatoes.
Bats Help Produce Our Favorite Foods
Much like bees, bats pollinate flowers as they feed on their nectar. The pollination that occurs from bats traveling from flower to flower helps these plants to produce the fruit and seeds needed to continue growing. Bats have been documented pollinating over 700 types of plants — many of which we use for food and medicine — including bananas, avocados, dates, and peaches.
Bats Help the Environment Outdoors
While bats can be a good thing for the environment, they only benefit the environment when they are outside where they belong. As important an asset as they are, the fact remains that bats are wild animals that can cause quite of bit of damage and contaminate your home should they decide to roost at your residence.
Florida Bat Protections
If you notice the presence of bats on your property, there are several things you should know before approaching them or attempting bat removal on your own. Because of their importance to our environment, many species of bats are protected under Florida wildlife laws. Therefore, many do-it-yourself bat removal methods are illegal during certain times of the year, such as bat maternity season.
Furthermore, protected bat removal requires specific equipment and experience to safely extract and exclude bats from a given property — expertise that an average homeowner most certainly lacks. To avoid any legal ramifications due to improper bat removal, rely on the services of a bat removal specialist.
Professional Bat Removal in Orlando
At Critter Control® of Orlando, our licensed and trained technicians are experienced in effective, legal, and humane bat removal. We will inspect your property for bat activity, devise a plan for removal, and exclude entry points so the bats cannot return. So, the next time you see bats flying around outside your property, don’t panic. Instead, contact the professional bat removal specialists at Critter Control® of Orlando.