The spring thaw is fast approaching, and I am sure many of us are anxiously awaiting putting more bat house poles in the ground and the arrival of bats in our houses during April and May.
This winter has been a great experience for me...first by joining the best bat house forum on the web, second by having the time to create and build new designs, and third by having the drive to contact more parks to expand the bat house project in my area.
My large project at Pleasant Creek State Park should be in full swing by the end of March. At first there will be six bat houses by the 410 acre lake, and by spring of 2009 I anticipate hanging at least six more. The recent snowfall (12 inches) has postponed my hanging of the nursery house at the Indian Creek Nature Center, but I hope to get it mounted within two weeks. With the addition of this new house next to my "wrap around" nursery houses, the colony should increase to at least 1000 bats in the next three years given how fast the bats multiplied in the former houses. I may design a wider (30") house to hang at this site, and this has the potential to house at least 1200 bats between the three houses, but once again I have to keep the weight down since being 15 feet up on a ladder wrestling a 40 pound bat house isn't my idea of safe.
I wish everyone a great 2008, and I hope some new innovations for bat houses are created!
