More Pearland residents have been turning up on Fite Road recently to see one of the city's hidden gems - the Fite Bridge bat colony.

The colony of 10,000 Mexican Free-tailed bats has been roosting under the bridge, to the city's knowledge, for four years.

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Recently, it's not uncommon to see residents and people from surrounding communities near the colony at dusk, waiting for the bats to leave their roost. Usually at about 8:30 p.m., it looks like a black ribbon curling into the sky.

Residents interested in seeing the bats shouldn't park on the shoulder, said Cullen Ondracek, natural resources manager for the city of Pearland.

"The colony roosts under the Fite Road bridge, but I do not recommend anyone stand on the bridge to view the bats," said Ondracek.

"It is not safe to stand on the road shoulder in low light and it could potentially disturb the colony. I recommend parking at the Stella Roberts Recycle Center and walking across the street to the Edible Fruit Trail. From there, walk the path to the east and there is a picnic area where you can view the bats by looking north up the ditch to the bridge where the roost is located."

Ondracek said that people who go to view the bats' emergence should consider bringing binoculars, water, insect repellant and snacks.

The bats are important to the local ecology, said Jonah Evans, a mammologist for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

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"Bats consume a huge amount of food every night, which consists of insects," Evans said.

"For a while, we had questions about where the bats were able to go and get enough food to sustain themselves, and with lots of research we found that they were flying up to very high elevations and feeding on migrating insects, like cornsilk moths, for example."

These moths, and other insects the bats feed on, are agricultural pests, Evans said. Because so many are taken out by the bats each night, it's estimated that colonies like the Waugh Bridge bat colony in Houston, the large colonies in Austin and, to a smaller extent, the Fite Bridge colony can help save farmers and those in the agricultural businesses millions of dollars per year.

"They're not having to spray pesticides and they're not suffering loss of crops because of the pests – bats are a very important part of the ecosystem."

The number of Mexican Free-tailed bats are a testament to their ability to thrive and adapt.

"We're seeing an increase in their numbers, which is fantastic," Evans said. "Part of the reason that might be happening is because of the availability of manmade structures that they can roost in. A huge cave isn't always an easy thing to find, but with bridges, abandoned buildings, even football stadiums, it's giving the bats a place to roost and form these very large, social communities."

There are some safety considerations that residents should consider when watching the emergence.

Pets should be kept on leashes. Noise levels should be kept under control as loud noises may disrupt the emergence.

If a bat is found on the ground, officials recommend not picking it up under any circumstances. A grounded bat, the Texas Parks and Wildlife website says, could be a pup learning to fly or injured, and would be more likely to bite.