Category Archives: bats

Man-Made Bat Cave Aims to Aid WNS Bats

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The bat cave created by The Nature Conservancy chapter in Tennessee can be disinfected after each hibernation season, which may offer some bats a refuge from white nose syndrome (WNS). According to the Leaf Chronicle, the cave cost $300,000, which was raised entirely from private funds.

The article also notes that the cave was built near an existing bat hibernation site.

Lots of details in the Leaf Chronicle article. Read it here.
Read a shorter article in Popular Science, here.
The Nature Conservancy press release is here.
A Nature Conservancy interview with project leader Cory Holliday, here.

What the two reported articles don’t say is that the cave is an answer to a common question about possible solutions for white nose syndrome: Why don’t you just disinfect the cave with an anti-fungal? (Any doubts that this is common? See the comments after the articles.) The short answer is that a cave is a complex ecosystem and fungi play an important role. So far there isn’t a way to kill just the WNS fungus without killing other fungi in the cave.

The artificial cave doesn’t have an ecosystem, so it can be sterilized when the bats leave in the spring. This should prevent healthy bats from be infected from fungi in the cave the following winter, perhaps lessening the virulence in that cave.

It’s pricey, time-consuming and takes some of the wildness away from the bats, but compared to having wildlife rehabilitators raise a “Noah’s ark” population (which has been discussed at times with some seriousness, and even tried with Virginia big-eared bats), it’s likely cheaper, easier and less disruptive.

…And, this just in: An Associated Press story (here in the San Francisco Chronicle) does get into some of these details. Read it here.

Photo: View of the artificial bat cave, with the human entrance below and the bat entrance above. Photo credit: © Cory Holliday, The Nature Conservancy

Turtles, Cougars, and Frogs in the Southwest

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The current issue of Southwestern Naturalist has several articles that may be of interest to biologists outside of the region.

Yellow mud turtles decline in the Midwest. The largest populations of yellow mud turtles in Iowa, Illinois, and Missouri have experienced severe declines. Withdrawal of water from aquifers is the main cause, but the growth of woody plants also plays a role. Read the article, here. (Requires fee or subscription for full article.)
More info on yellow mud turtles from Texas Parks and Wildlife, here.

Cougar habitat in Texas and northern Mexico. Researchers from Sul Ross State University tested a model of current and potential cougar (Puma concolor) in Texas and northern Mexico and found that it worked. Read the article here. (Same for fees or subscription.)

Fungus strikes desert frogs. Chytrid fungus was found in desert oasis frog populations in Baja California Sur. The oases with higher infection rates also had bullfrogs and non-native crayfish. Read the article here.

Also interesting: Western red bats (Lasiurus blossevillii) and Arizona myotis (Myotis occultus) were found on the lower Arizona River after the area was restored. The Arizona myotis had been extirpated from the area, and the western red bat had not be found there previously. Read the article here.

New Bat Rule In NH

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Bats in the barn? A new rule in New Hampshire says that they can’t be removed between May 15 and August 15, when bats are typically raising their young. If a bat has tested positive for rabies, then special permission to exclude the bats will be given.

The rule only applies to unoccupied structures.

“This rule helps protect our remaining bat populations during the time when they are raising young,” said New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Program biologist Emily Brunkhurst in a department press release. “While this measure is certainly helpful, we strongly urge people to avoid evicting bats from any structure, occupied or otherwise, during the summer months. Our bats are in big trouble, and, this is something concrete you can do to help them survive.”

The problem, of course, is white nose syndrome, which has reduced the populations of five out of New Hampshire’s eight bat species. Little brown bat populations have declined 99 percent, the release says.

The press release also notes that white nose syndrome has been detected in Rockingham County, in the southeastern corner of the state, near Boston, Mass.

The press release includes many interesting details about white nose syndrome in NH, and is worth reading just for that. Read it here.

Photo: Long-eared bats have been hit hard by WNS in New Hampshire. Courtesy New Hampshire Fish and Game Department.

Preventing Wildlife Deaths at Wind Turbines

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Last week the journal Nature published a news feature that rounded up various ways wind power companies are trying to prevent the deaths of birds and bats at wind farms.

The article begins with one labor intensive method: a team of scientists spots a migrating raptor, then alerts the wind farm operators, who shut down the turbines until the bird is safely passed. This, it should be noted, happens in Spain, at the Strait of Gibraltar.

In Pennsylvania, a radar system (the same one we discussed earlier, the fact) detects flocks of migrating birds and shuts the turbines down. It’s not so good for single birds, though. The death of one pelican was recorded on video.

The article notes that the wind power company’s records of the radar system haven’t been shared with independent scientists studying wind turbine collisions, so the system is a bit of a black box.

The article also mentions the successful reduction of bat deaths by stopping the turbines when wind speeds fall below a certain threshold when bats are most active.

Read the whole article in Nature, here.

Fungus, But No WNS Symptoms in Iowa Cave

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On Wednesday, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources announced that a low level of the fungus that causes white nose syndrome was found on one of the 15 bats swabbed this winter at a tourist cave run by the state. None of the bats seen in the cave appeared to have symptoms of white nose syndrome.

According to the Iowa DNR release, to prevent the fungus from spreading to other caves, “the DNR will be adding mats with disinfection solution that people will walk across after leaving the caves….”

Read the Iowa DNR press release here.
Read an article in the Kansas City InfoZone, here.

The InfoZone story includes a criticism of Iowa DNR by the Center for BioDiversity for keeping the cave open to the public after the fungus was discovered.

You can also read the Center for BioDiversity press release, here.

Photo: Maquoketa Caves State Park, courtesy of Iowa DNR

Checking for White Nose in Florida

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The U.S. Forest Service, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the University of Florida have teamed up to conduct a five-day “Bat Blitz” in Apalachicola National Forest in northern Florida to test for white nose syndrome and the general health of the area’s bat population.

Read all the details on the USDA Blog.

Photo credit: U.S. Forest Service photo by Porter Libby.


 

White Nose Syndrome Symposium

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The fifth annual symposium on white nose syndrome in bats is taking place in Madison, Wisconsin this week. The sessions have been closed to the public, so this sneak peek comes to you through yesterday’s media conference call and some research on the internet.

The purpose of the conference is to present current white nose syndrome research, particularly epidemiological research, the ecology of Geomyces destructans and insights from Europe, said Ann Froschauer, white nose syndrome communications and outreach coordinator for the US Fish and Wildlife Service, and to discuss cave closure policies and other preventive measures.

Today’s the day for state and management issues. There will be presentations on bat hibernacula management by Greg Turner (Pennsylvania Game Commission), Dave Redell (Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources) and Rita Dixon (Idaho Dept. Fish & Game).

This evening there will be breakout sessions for states to discuss bat management issues by region.

No press to link to yet, but we’ll keep an eye out.

Photo of afflicted bat in Great Smoky Mountain National Park, courtesy of US Fish and Wildlife Service

Birds, Wind Turbines, and Radar

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In the Tehachapi Mountains north of Los Angeles, migrating birds flow through a canyon “like a living river of birds,” the Los Angeles Times says. These locations are not only attractive to birds, but to wind power developers as well.

These developers are thinking about using radar units and experimental telemetry systems to avoid killing birds, the article says.

The radar systems cost about $500,000, the article reports, and work best in flat, treeless places. (The radar company mentioned in the article, DeTect, Inc. appears to work mostly with airports, which are definitely flat, treeless places.) Several radar units would be needed in a place like the Tehachapi mountain canyon.

The article also mentions linking the telemetry units on individual condors to cut-offs at wind power facilities. If a tagged condor flies too near a wind farm, the rotors stop spinning.

Read the article in the Los Angeles Times, here.
Info on the bird and bat radar systems from DeTect, mentioned in the article, here.

Birds, Wind Turbines, and Radar

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In the Tehachapi Mountains north of Los Angeles, migrating birds flow through a canyon “like a living river of birds,” the Los Angeles Times says. These locations are not only attractive to birds, but to wind power developers as well.

These developers are thinking about using radar units and experimental telemetry systems to avoid killing birds, the article says.

The radar systems cost about $500,000, the article reports, and work best in flat, treeless places. (The radar company mentioned in the article, DeTect, Inc. appears to work mostly with airports, which are definitely flat, treeless places.) Several radar units would be needed in a place like the Tehachapi mountain canyon.

The article also mentions linking the telemetry units on individual condors to cut-offs at wind power facilities. If a tagged condor flies too near a wind farm, the rotors stop spinning.

Read the article in the Los Angeles Times, here.
Info on the bird and bat radar systems from DeTect, mentioned in the article, here.

Fashion and Art Shows for Bats

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Bats in Vermont are not wearing haute couture gowns, and they are not perusing fine art in Philly, but they are still benefiting from a fashion show and an art show in those locations.

In Vermont, the state Fish and Wildlife Department is the beneficiary of a bat-themed fashion show featuring six local designers. Scott Darling, Vermont’s bat biologist, will be on hand to explain the impact of white nose syndrome on the state’s bats.

Read this Associated Press article in the Bennington Banner. You have to scroll to the bottom of a bunch of jumbled-together stories.

In Philadelphia, a show of bat-themed art is benefiting Bat Conservation International. The show, called “Empty Night Skies,” has already raised thousands of dollars for the organization, according to Philadelphia Weekly, and runs through June 13.

Read the article in Philadelphia Weekly for the details, but be prepared to hold your nose through the first few paragraphs. (Does this guy even know any kids? Today’s generation was brought up with Stellaluna, and in general, thinks bats are cool even — or especially — if they think bats are creepy.)

Photo: Our own bat art, made from a photo of a gray bat from the US Fish and Wildlife Service