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By John Soltes
Editor-in-Chief

RUTHERFORD (Sept. 10, 2008, 12:30 p.m.) — Winged creatures that go bump in the night have been causing trouble to the slumbering residents of Rutherford.

In August, over a 14-day period, the Rutherford Health Department fielded nine calls from residents who had bats in their dwellings. The number of calls was “highly unusual,” according to Brian O’Keefe, health official for the borough.

“I don’t know what occurred in the month of August,” O’Keefe said. “We usually get one or two calls per year.”

Six of the nine calls resulted in the capture of a bat. Of the six, one bat tested positive for rabies.

“For the bat that did test positive … the woman awoke at 1 a.m. in the morning and thought she was dreaming that there was a bat in the bedroom,” O’Keefe said, adding that the lady saw the bat later in the day and called the authorities. “The bat had free access to the home.”

For the three homes where a bat was not captured, the residents are undergoing post-exposure treatment for rabies that includes five inoculations over a 28-day period — a necessary precaution, according to O’Keefe.

“You could be sleeping in the middle of the night and not realize that the bat landed on you and bit you,” O’Keefe said. “Rabies is a fatal disease … so you don’t have a second chance.”

The most common rabies virus responsible for human deaths in the United States is bat-related, according to a Rutherford Health Department press release.

The first bat call was placed Aug. 6, and the last two calls came in Aug. 25.

Though the number of bats in Rutherford dwellings seemingly has increased over the past month, Kirk LaPierre, the owner of Saver-NGM in Rutherford, said his business of animal control has seen a decrease this year for bats. He believes the reason is because of a sickness that has affected bats in the Northeast — namely the big and little brown bat — called White Nose Syndrome.

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service estimates that tens of thousands of bats have died from the syndrome, which leaves a white fungus on the muzzles of affected bats.

“It’s a little bit slower than normal,” said LaPierre, a 30-year expert in the field.

What to do?

O’Keefe recommends those with a bat problem to call the police department first, and then officers will reach out to animal control experts.

LaPierre may, in fact, be the man who arrives at the doorstep, as his business covers the local area and generally receives 200 calls per year for bats in Bergen County homes.

LaPierre said that it’s difficult to tell whether you have a bat problem, because they often roost in eaves and tucked-away places. The tell-tale sign is their guano, or droppings, which can often be spotted on the walls or sides of a house.

When seeking an animal control expert, LaPierre recommended looking for a business certified by Bat Conservation International, a research and education initiative geared at promoting bat conservation.

After a “batman” comes to the house, he or she will determine where the creatures entered from and seal up the hole. All a bat needs, LaPierre added, is an opening the size of a pinky finger, or roughly a 1/2 inch.

LaPierre also pointed out that the bat maternity season runs in June, July and August, when the young are suckling on their parents — mothers and fathers trade on and off.

Despite the lore associated with bats and their unseemly looks, LaPierre said they are beneficial to the world’s well-being. “Bats have pollinated this world more than any bees,” he said.

If a bat had access to the living space of a house, it is recommended that rabies shots are administered.

“Because bat bites may be less severe, heal rapidly and therefore be more difficult to find or recognize than bites inflicted by larger mammals, care needs to be exhibited,” according to a press release from the Rutherford Health Department.

O’Keefe said he has reached out to other local health departments, from Hasbrouck Heights to North Arlington, to see whether they have had an increase in bat calls as well. Lyndhurst Health Administrator Joyce Jacobson reported no recent bat calls.

MORE INFORMATION

For Rutherford residents who observe a bat in their house, they should call Rutherford Police at 201-939-6000. For further questions, call the Rutherford Health Department at 201-460-3020.