Kenton Lysak wants to see more bat houses in Saskatoon

Bats are nothing to fear and are one of the best ways to take the bite out of mosquito season, accordingto Beaver Creek Conservation Area senior interpreter Kenton Lysak.

A bat can eat over a 1,000mosquitoes perhour,Lysak said during an interview withCBC'sSaskatoon Morning.

"They're insectivores,so they don't eat humans or anything,they're just crushing theexoskeletons of insects," Lysak said, while pointing out the fangs of Batrick, one of BeaverCreek'srehabilitated bats used for education.

Lysak acknowledges some people are wary of bats, worrying they can be harmful to humans. But hesaid the fears are unfounded.

"People used to think that every one of them carried rabies ... [but]scientistshave found out other species like skunks or raccoons carry rabies in much higher frequencies, less than one per cent of bats carry rabies."

Saskatchewan'smost common species, the little brown bat, is listed as a species at risk by the federal government. While Saskatchewan hasn't been affected, bats across the Untied States,and some parts of Canada,have fellvictimto white-nose syndrome.

"[It's]fungus that gets on the bats skins, and when it spreads, it can spread to entire colonies... it spreads like wildfire, and it actually eventually kills the bats," hesaid. "It has reached Canada in the east ... but so far it hasn't reached central Canada as far as Saskatchewan goes. We want to monitor this as much as we can."

Lysak said white-nose syndrome has killed over sixmillion bats in North America.

If people want to help the bats, Lysak said the easiest thing you can do is build a bat house.

"[They're] really simple to make ...and the best thing about bats is that they're not picky ... they love the cheapest wood as long you stain it so it's weather resistant," he said. "And you put the bat house on the south side so it can get heat from the sun."

Besides creating a home for an animal with insatiable appetite for mosquitoes, he said a bat house can also deter bats from setting up in attics and other unwanted areas.

"For all the places I go to around Saskatoon [with bats],I put a bat box by all the houses ... I would say 90 per cent of the time bats will not even bother going to the house any more, they prefer a well placed bat box."