Enough of you have asked me about its status to necessitate this parenting blog update. Here is the update:
Still waiting!
If any bat had even entered the cedar box with the slots on the bottom, I never saw it happen. Am I doing anything wrong or right? Maybe.
A good bat house should get lots of morning sun to warm it up (bats like the morning heat while they're sleeping) so the bat house needs to face the Southeast. Mine does, but I think a few trees are getting in the way of maximizing the amount of sunlight it should get.
Another issue: the tree itself. Online sources say the most successful bat houses are the ones that are hung on the sides of houses (the ones we humans live in). I'm not about to do that, for fear of seeing bats move into my attic. These same sources say the next best place to put a bat house is on a 10-foot pole. I took my chances on the easier route by simply screwing it onto the side of a tree. No time to buy a pole, dig a hole, cement the pole, etc.
So, even though my family sees a bat flying around the backyard just about every night this summer, none of them seem to be enticed by the cedar accommodations. I'm not giving up, hoping that might change next year.
Thanks for your interest!
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