Bats

Locations of Potential and Occupied Bat Features across Military installations of Southwestern Arizona, 2014.

This project identifies potential bat roost structures on combined DoD lands of three southwestern installations by developing and utilizing a landscape scale GIS model that identifies the location of potential subterranean features. All sensitive bat species encountered within these subterranean features are documented, and a sampling regime is proposed that can be used to monitor all bat species at-risk and of concern while maintaining mission critical activities.

This project identified diurnal bat roost structures on three Department of Defense lands. This effort was facilitated through the development of a remotely sensed Geographic Information System based model that utilizes site specific geo-referenced macro-variables to predict potential bat roosting features on the installations.

The primary mission of the project as a whole, including work on White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) was to locate and survey all subterranean features capable of providing habitat for bats. The vast majority of the WSMR sites were abandoned mine features, but other sites surveyed included caves, shelters, buildings, bunkers, and other miscellaneous military structures. While conducting these surveys our team generated an inventory of nearly all mine features located on the base, as well as documenting significant biologic and historic resources.

This report details the goals and accomplishments of the second White-nose Syndrome (WNS) Science Strategy Meeting held in Austin, Texas, May 27-28, 2009. Fourteen leading scientists from the most relevant disciplines, representing universities, national laboratories, and state agencies, participated. In addition, representatives of 12 federal and state wildlife agencies and non-government organizations joined in discussions in the two-day meeting. The overall goals of this meeting were to further explore the symptoms, causes, and consequences of this emerging disease.

The specific objectives of The Bat Grid Project are to develop better methods for collecting acoustic, morphologic, and genetic data so that species can be more effectively identified and their presence and distribution better understood, contribute to baseline inventory and long-term monitoring of bat species presence, and develop responsive conservation efforts for this taxon in the Pacific Northwest, incorporate DoD lands in the Pacific Northwest into The Bat Grid Project, and develop a model for bat inventory and monitoring that can be applied regionally or nationally. This report reflects results from the second year of data collection under The Legacy Program for The Bat Grid Inventory and Monitoring Project that spans the Pacific Northwest. Detailed background on the project is available in the 2008 Inventory Report.

This report details a two-level monitoring protocol designed specifically to address Department of Defense (DoD) and the State of Utah management objectives regarding 1) landscape scale bat ecology issues and 2) statewide bat demographics.

These 4 posters summarize the goals, findings and accomplishments of this multi-year effort to understand the status of bats in Utah and measures to take to conserve and manage them.

Legacy Project #: 09-346 The purpose of this report is to consolidate, understand, and apply bat data and knowledge gained through Legacy funded projects Legacy Phase I 07-346, Legacy Phase II 08-346, and Legacy Phase III 09-346 to support military mission activity and land management. This plan addresses DoD facilities in Utah whose management authority extends over 1.8 million acres, about 15% of total DoD lands ownership in the continental U.S. Contains actionable management recommendations for each base to cover the improvement and or sustainment of bat populations including impact offset measures in active and former mission use areas.

Bat populations and communities have been monitored in Utah for over 100 years, on 12 land owner types including department of defense (DoD) lands. This project enabled a consolidation of all known bat data in the State of Utah. This report analyses the data across space and time within the state within 6 objectives (survey effort, occurrence, diversity, abundance, roosting and breeding locations and environmental associations), across 6scales (ecoregion, physiographic province, land cover, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR) regions, land owner type, and county).

The purpose of this document is (1) to identify deficiencies in the understanding of the biology of the bats that inhabit Utah, (2) to identify anthropogenic threats to the bats of this state, (3) to direct research efforts to acquire needed knowledge, and (4) thus to guide management of Utahs bat species to ensure the viability of bat populations in the state. It is intended not to be static but instead to be a dynamic or a living document that will be updated and expanded in future editions.

The specific objectives of The Bat Grid Project are to develop better methods for collecting acoustic, morphologic, and genetic data so that species can be more effectively identified and their presence and distribution better understood, to contribute to baseline inventory and long-term monitoring of bat species presence, and develop responsive conservation efforts for this taxa in the Pacific Northwest, and develop a model for bat inventory and monitoring that can be applied regionally or nationally. This report details the efforts and achievements of this project.

Due to human disturbance at roost sites, populations of gray bats (Myotis grisescens) were declining in the 1960's and 1970's. The gray bat was listed as endangered species in 1976. Since its initial listing, the gray bat population has increased throughout most of its range. In 2005 there were discussions about the possibility of down-listing their status to "threatened". As part of this process, the need for updated population estimates was identified. This project was initiated to compile needed data on the population of gray bats in Tennessee during the summer.

In response to the USFWS Federal Register Announcement, this document details the extent of gray bat populations, habitat and conservation measures at Army installations throughout the species range. This report also details the addition survey and conservation efforts accomplished by the Legacy project.

The primary mission of the work on Fort Bliss Army Post was to locate and survey all subterranean features that could provide habitat for bats.

The primary mission of our work on the Kirtland Air Force Base was to locate and survey all subterranean features that could provide habitat for bats.

The primary mission of this part of the project was to locate and survey all subterranean features located on New Mexico Army National Guard training sites that could provide habitat for bats.

Video from the Fort Huachuca field trip conducted during the WNS and Bats Workshop on Bat Ecology, White Nose Syndrome and Implications to the DoD Mission - Tucson, AZ, August 30-September 1, 2011 (Legacy 10-445).

WNS Summer Decontamination Video from August 31, 2011 during the Fort Huachuca field trip, part of the WNS and Bats Workshop on Bat Ecology, White Nose Syndrome and Implications to the DoD Mission - Tucson, AZ (Legacy 10-445).