Mexican Free-Tailed Bat enjoying a meal
Here’s a great “second chance” story about an elementary school bat rescue.
Somehow, a juvenile Mexican Free-Tailed bat landed in a trash can at an elementary school in Vacaville. This can happen more often than you think! Luckily for this bat, a first grade student who was tossing away some trash saw him, and reported the discovery to a bat-friendly adult, the school custodian. The custodian was able to safely get the bat into a box, and contacted Northern California Bats (NorCal Bats). We were able to pick up the bat from the school and bring it in for evaluation.
Rescued Mexican Free-Tailed Bat about to be released
We found that the little bat was dehydrated and thin, but otherwise in good shape. Although he was a juvenile, he was old enough to be able to fly. After a few days in our “bat spa”, with plenty of water and yummy mealworms, he had regained enough weight and strength to be able to be released. We returned him to the park next to the school, and he was able to fly off to find his family.
Getting stuck in trash cans, buckets, sinks, and similar spots is all too common for bats. Once they get in they often have a very hard time getting out. The sides are slick, the container walls are high, there isn’t anything to cling to for climbing out. They can’t jump up, and there isn’t enough room for them to spread their wings well enough to fly out. Sadly, bats in this situation will perish if they aren’t found by someone who can free them from the trap. If you have a spot where you often see bats, please take care to cover these kinds of receptacles so the bats don’t get trapped!
We need your help! If you are interested in supporting our efforts to rescue bats, please visit our how we are funded page. And if you have questions about our rescue efforts, or have a topic you’d like us to write an article about, please leave a comment below! Thank you.
