It is Illegal To Kill These Little Vampires In Utah

There are 18 species of bats here in Utah. The largest has a wingspan of 17 inches and the smallest about as big as your thumb. They may find their way into your house or your high school like they discovered in Highland High School after the summer break. Even if they do invade your space, it is illegal to kill them in Utah as they are a protected wildlife species. 

They normally roost in caves and cliff but its not uncommon to find them in houses or sheds where they enter through broken screens or a loose board. This can be a bit scary to discover when poking your head into the attic.

If you do find a bat in your home or your high school, you can call a wildlife rehabilitator and have it removed. If you remove it yourself, wear gloves and cardboard or a bucket to pick it up. If you do come in contact with the bat, it can carry rabies, and you should contact the health department if you are bitten. 

Bats can be beneficial in getting rid of bugs like mosquitos. They can eat thousands of those little blood suckers in one evening. I love to see the bats dive bomb my pool when day turns to dusk. They swoop down and skim the water. I don’t know if they are scooping up a drink or snatching bugs out of the air, but it is cool to watch, unless you are in the pool at the time. 

If you want more bats, you can build them a bat house. There are instructions on how to build one and then you attract them by creating a water source that attracts bugs. It seems to defeat the purpose if that is why you wanted bats around in the first place. Maybe you just get a bat condo so you can refer to yourself as batman when talking to your neighbors.