Watch CBS News

VIDEO: Hundreds Of Bats Swarm Sky Above McHenry County Silo

CHICAGO (CBS) -- A man in Lake in the Hills is intrigued, but slightly creeped out by his neighbors, and the colony of bats living in a silo right next door.

Last summer was when Steve Thompson first noticed them. At first he thought they were birds flying in and out of the old silo behind his apartment. Then he realized they're bats.

"The sun drops, but it's not dark yet, and it's still daylight out, and as soon as it becomes that point of night, the bats will come straight out of a hole in the top of a concrete silo next to our apartment complex. And they come out by the hundreds," he said.

Thompson said he thinks there are as many as 2,000 bats going in and out of the silo, and he finds the proximity a little unsettling.

"Normally I'd say 'whatever.' I'm a nature guy. I don't really care, but there are a lot of bats," he said.

Podcast

The McHenry County Health Department said the bats are not a health issue, as long as people leave them alone, and they don't end up in your house.

The county said it has recorded no cases of rabid bats so far this year.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.