A bat in your house ! | MNHNL Data portal

Chiroptera

Recognise!

There are 18 different bat-species in Luxembourg. Bats are the only mammals that can fly actively. Some can be as small as a thump, others taller than a hand. They have relatively big ears, a furry brown or grey body, a little nose and two wings which are larger than their body. During the day they are hanging head first under a roof or are creeping away in a shelter, where they sleep. They prefer dark and weather-protected spots like sheds, stables, churches, old houses, attics and in the boxes of the shutter. Where they find suitable shelter, they settle down, a small opening (2-5 cm) to enter is all they need. During the night bats are active and hunting insects.

Did you know?

Bats see with their ears. They use echolocation; they emit calls (ultrasound) out to the environment and listen to the echoes of those calls that return from various objects in the environment. Echolocation is used for navigation and for hunting insects like for example butterflies. Some people are afraid they could tangle up in the hair, but this is a myth, because bats can identify objects of a size of 0,08 mm.

Bats are harmless and don’t attack people. Although they have sharp teeth, they do not drink blood in Europe but are foraging only on insects. If you have once a bat in the room, don’t panic, switch off the light, open the windows and the doors, the bat will fly away by itself.

If you need more information call 46 22 33 414 in the national museum of natural history or 40 22 01 221 or 661 27 43 23 in the administration of nature and forest.

Bat-line: bat@anf.etat.lu

Foto: François Schwaab