As your premier Austin custom homebuilder, Sterling Custom Homes enjoys all the distinctive characteristics of our popular town. An interesting fact: Austin calls itself The Bat Capital of America and is proud to host about 1-½ million bats per summer. The perfect bat roost exists at The Congress Ave. Bridge, but merely by accident, after the 1980 renovation. At that time, a series of long, thin joints were designed by engineers and added underneath the bridge that soon became home to Mexican free-tailed bats from April through September, annually.
Each spring, a maternity colony of 750,000 female bats arrive from Mexico to nestle into the bridge by April. Throughout the month of May the mothers-to-be prepare for the June births by feeding each night on flying insects at twilight. Upon birth of one “pup” per mother, the bridge quickly becomes home to a population of 1 ½ million mammals. By July, these nursing mothers are consuming 20,000 pounds of insects per night and by August these pups are weaned and eating their own share of insects each night~ good-bye Texas-size mosquitoes!
September is still an outstanding month for watching bats, but it’s largely dictated by the weather at this point. As long as it remains warm and dry, the bats stay in our great city until full migration in October. If you have never experienced the emergence of bats at twilight, head to the bridge soon! If you miss the bat show, then head out to your own outdoor living area to enjoy the beautiful Austin sunset!