CHEROKEE — Mexican free-tailed bats remain in a false ceiling at Cherokee High School a month after officials began planning their eviction.
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Some of the estimated 2,000 to 3,000 bats have been removed, but school officials are unsure of how many bats are left, said Ray Pebsworth, Cherokee School District Superintendent.
Ivan Lauer, pest specialist, will be back at the school Wednesday to check if the pesky rodent population is getting smaller, Pebsworth said.
The school district hired Laurer to rid the school of a 50-year-old problem with bats. Lauer is being paid $8,100.
"That's just for exclusion, not for cleaning up,” Pebsworth said.
Pebsworth said the type of trap Lauer set allows the bats to get out of the school building, but they aren't able to get back in.
"A bat can get through a quarter-of-an-inch opening,” Pebsworth said. "We know there are two major entrances.”
About the problem
Pebsworth said the bats are in the school's auditorium and cafeteria false ceiling and are not visible to students or workers, but occasionally bats have made their way into the school hallway or classroom.
"Last Monday, there were seven bats hanging upside down in the foyer of the auditorium,” Pebsworth said.
Most of the old-timers said they have been dealing with bats for more than 50 years, and a lot of people don't understand why the school wants to clean up the problem, Pebsworth said.
"Their (bats) main diet is mosquitoes,” Pebsworth said.
Mexican free-tailed bats are migratory and spend winters in Mexico.
Health effects
The Oklahoma Health Department said the bats pose little health risk to students and staff, but colonies can pose health problems, mainly from the guano they produce.
Histoplasmosis, an airborne disease caused by a microscopic soil fungus, can damage human lungs.
It often is misdiagnosed as influenza or tuberculosis.
It becomes a problem only when guano is disturbed.
Bites usually result from people attempting to handle a bat, according to the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center.
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