More than 1,000 frozen bats rescued from arctic blast in Houston

More than 1,000 frozen bats have been rescued by the Houston Humane Society Wildlife Center who were trapped during the winter storm that surged across the state. 

Wildlife rescue teams started around 5 a.m. Tuesday as teams visited four bridges across the Houston area, rescuing more than 900 bats, with another 300 expected to be saved by the evening. 

A spokesperson for the organization posted on social media stating that the bats were recovering quickly. 

“We have incubators, which we set at a very high temperature, so about 95 degrees. We’re keeping the humidity about 86% humidity, because that’s the type of environment the bats thrive in,” Tiffani Gallardo with the Houston Humane Society Wildlife Center told Fox 26 Houston. “We’re going to stick them in there, and their bodies are going to slowly warm up and start moving around again, get their bearings again, and kind of come out of that freeze state. Once they’re out of that freeze state, we’ll provide them with some fluids.”

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Once the bats are fully recovered, rescue teams are planning to release them back into their colonies. 

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“Bats are really quite beneficial creatures that can eat thousands of insects in just one night. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department determined that the value of insect control by bats in Texas is $1.4 billion per year,” the organization said. 

As of now, the Houston Humane Society said that they are aiming to release the bats by Thursday when temperatures are expected to warm back up to the 70s.