Volgograd Rescues Entire Colony of Wild but Cute Nocturnal Predators

In the south of Volgograd, a disinfector saved 99 bats from certain death. Residents of an apartment building called pest control specialists to kill all the bat predators that had taken a liking to their attic. Instead, the young man took all the bats and brought them to a shelter.

At the wild animal rehabilitation center «Bird Island,» they have been rescuing bats for more than a year. The disinfector brought the captured creatures here as well.

— In the Krasnoarmeysky district of Volgograd, in an apartment building, a young man who works in disinfection caught 99 bats. He was called to remove the mice. Instead of killing them, he removed the mice, very skillfully put them in a bucket, and brought them to us. We have already examined them — all are completely intact, very well-fed, in good condition, now practically in hibernation. We transferred them to containers, later we will move them to a special refrigerator where they will winter, — says the center«s head Alina Erina.

According to her, bats must be preserved and protected, as they perform a very important function in the ecosystem.

— In Volgograd, three species of bats are most commonly found — these are the common noctule, the pipistrelle, and the parti-colored bat. All these mice eat insects and exterminate pests. They never attack people. Mice can make sounds, squeak — this frightens some people, but a mouse cannot attack a human. Mice themselves are afraid of people; in panic, they might accidentally fly into a person, but they will never bite on purpose.

The center»s staff and volunteers catch bats in the city to protect them from people and release them into the wild outside the city.

— We have a group of volunteers who work with bats from our center. It«s me, a girl in the Sovetsky district, and two girls in Volzhsky. The main thing for people to remember is that bats should not be killed. It»s better to contact us or catch them yourself, taking thick fabric to protect your hand, then the bat definitely won«t bite. You can wear a thick glove, hat, scarf, or something else. Bats are brought to us, here we examine them for any injuries. If a bat is injured, as, for example, was the case several years ago at the Gagarin Cultural Center, we send the caught bats to the Moscow Zoo. There, at the special bat department, operations are performed, and after treatment, the bats are sent back to Volgograd, because there are certain rules — to release bats only in the regions where they were caught.

After the period of winter hibernation, bats are examined, fed, and prepared for the new summer season, as Alina Erina tells:

— They wake up very hungry. Yes, in winter, mice also wake up several times to stretch and drink water, but they only fully come out of hibernation in spring. If everything is good and the mice feel as they should, we release them into the wild, where nothing threatens the animals, — says Alina Erina.

Recall that bats have already been sent to the refrigerator for traditional winter hibernation. About 300 bats were »repaired,« fattened up, and put into suspended animation until spring. More about how the mice survived the period of winter hibernation in the refrigerator is told here.