Bats take up residence at a South Lakeland apartment complex

LAKELAND, Fla. - Residents of a South Lakeland apartment complex have a big problem after thousands of bats have moved in. 

While bats can help reduce the mosquito population in the area, they do carry rabies.

"If a bat lands on you, you have to get a rabies shot, because you simply cannot afford to take a chance," said Dustin Hooper with All Creatures Wildlife Removal. 

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Even just coming in contact with their droppings can make you sick, so Hooper, who has been hired by the complex to get rid of them, is on a mission to reduce their population.

According to the law, he is limited to "excluding" them from the building. In other words, he is installing special nets that allow the bats to leave, but prevent them from returning.

He says that can get rid of the problem, but may create a similar one nearby.

"They are just going to go to another house or the other side of the building," Hooper said.

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Instead, he wants to trap and relocate them in an uninhabited area, something the law does not allow. According to written statement from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, "Relocations would reduce the bats chances for survival and bats are most likely to return to the area they were initially."

However, if the bat problem is addressed, it has to be done soon, or it will have to be put on hold for a while. Baby bat season starts in about a week, and once that begins, all bat removal has to stop until August.