The Bat HousesIn 1987, a historic building at the University of Florida called Johnson Hall burned d
The Bat HousesIn 1987, a historic building at the University of Florida called Johnson Hall burned down. One side effect of the destruction of this building was the displacement of a colony of bats that had occupied the attic of the building. Those bats quickly found a new home in the bleachers of several nearby UF athletic facilities.Needless to say, a colony of bats did not aid ticket sales at these facilities. The bats themselves, their waste urine, and the guano all proved to be…less than pleasant for sports spectators, including the state’s governor who attended an event there. The university’s athletic association then paid for the construction of these structures, which are believed to be the largest bat houses in the world. The houses were constructed with a number of small spaces in the top, perfect size for a bat to rest during the day.Over the next several years, the Athletic association encouraged the bats to relocate to these structures, both by moving them manually and by trying to move their waste to the site so that it was roughly “claimed” by them. It took about 4 years, but in the mid 1990s the bats finally began occupying the structures and as of now it is believed the colony living here totals about 300,000 bats.The structure actually collapsed once and had to be rebuilt due to damage and erosion from the bats’ urine. Today, the bats are actually a unique feature of the area; the majority of the colony will depart the structures to go hunt insects in a period of only 10-20 minutes near dusk, creating a viewing opportunity. They also are a natural insect control in the surrounding area.-JBBImage credits: https://flic.kr/p/fnDy1Yhttps://flic.kr/p/68f1Tmhttp://rosstsai.blogspot.com/References:https://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/bats/facts-about-colony/http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/uw290http://www.floridabats.org/CBH_Articles/UF-BatHouse.htm -- source link
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