MIDLAND, Ont. – Downtown Midland is providing housing for some low-flying creatures this spring.
In a step to help the town’s bat population that can be displaced by renovations to homes and businesses, some businesses are installing bat boxes above their entryways to offer these furry friends safe places to sleep during the day.
“The Downtown Midland BIA is excited to support this initiative as bats are a vital part of our ecosystem, helping to eliminate pesky bugs by making them their meals,” Downtown Midland Business Improvement Area operations manager Katarina Knezevic tells MidlandToday.
“We love that these bat boxes will provide a safe haven for bats and help prevent accidental encounters with people, while being beautifully painted by our local community.”
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The project is the brainchild of Home Depot Midland employee Julien Sepke, who spearheaded the initiative after speaking with a local business.
“They mentioned that due to construction and the reduced natural landscape around Midland, many bats have been left without a safe habitat,” Knezevic says.
“Being passionate about bats, Julien decided to help by constructing 20 bat boxes with materials generously donated by Midland Home Depot.”
All boxes are made of cedar to best withstand the elements. Once the boxes were constructed, Home Depot held a decorating contest where each department painted a box.
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According to Nature Ontario, there are eight species of these nocturnal creatures living in Ontario. They are the hoary bat, the eastern red bat, the silver-haired bat, the big brown bat, the tricolored bat, the little brown myotis bat, the northern long-eared myotis and the eastern small-footed myotis.
And the agency notes that while bats get an unfair "bad rap" due to their unfortunate link to Dracula and his thirsty, bloodsucking ways, “these harmless mammals play a vital role in sustaining the balance of ecosystems" across the globe.
“Bats are amazing animals,” the nature agency notes. “They help us pollinate important food crops and spread seeds that grow new trees. As insectivores, they help us manage pests that plague our homes, agriculture, forests and more.”
According to Knezevic, the bat boxes installed downtown will support Awenda Provincial Park's efforts to preserve the bat population in the Simcoe County area, which is home to all eight species of bats, four of which are on the endangered species list.
“The greatest threat to bats native to the area is white nose syndrome, a disease that causes bats to wake up from hibernation too early, depleting their fat stores too quickly,” she says, adding the Downtown Midland BIA is very happy to be involved with the initiative due to the vital role they play in the ecosystem.
“We love that these bat boxes will provide a safe haven for bats and help prevent accidental encounters with people, while being beautifully painted by our local community.”
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