Going Batty

International Bat Week, a global celebration of the world's most misunderstood mammal, fittingly comes to a close tomorrow on Halloween. To celebrate, let's take a trip down memory lane to that time five years ago when I helped with a bat colony count. It was late summer in 2017. I was just a few weeks away from leaving the Northwest and returning to my native Pennsylvania. I was invited to a pot luck for volunteers at Northwest Trek, a wildlife park in Eatonville, WA. I'd worked with them doing amphibian egg mass surveys for the state and nature mapping for Nisqually Land Trust. There was also a bat colony count happening that night, and I was asked if I would like to join. Of course I said yes. After white nose syndrome was detected in Washington, the state fish and wildlife service wanted to colony counts to establish a baseline population for monitoring purposes. Having worked on other conservation projects with Northwest Trek it was only natural that they would ask them to partner up again. And it was a no-brainer for me to get in on the action. After eating, we took an extended afterhours tram ride through the free roaming area to see the deer, elk, bison, moose, mountain goats, and bighorn sheep who don't know they're lving in captivity. There's nothing wrong with a little extra time hanging out with our animal friends. Afterwards, we returned to the park entrance. I was supposed to monitor the comings and goings at a bat box inside the park just inside the entrance. All I had to do was count how bats flew out and how many flew in, until I couldn't see anymore. Ins and outs, then subtract and the difference is my count. Very simple. But the bats had other plans for the night. Before we even got inside we could hear bats moving around inside the roof of the entrance. I never made it in. Instead, I stood outside the entrance counting bats. I watched as a little bat would drop down from the roof and gain altitude as it moved towards me. I only ducked once or twice. It was just instinct. I knew they wouldn't hit me. I figured with their echolocation they could tell where I was long before I saw them. I could hear theirs wings flapping and feel the breeze as they zipped past my head. At the end of the night, all the participants gathered to turn in their tally sheets. The counting station at the entrance, which wasn't on the list at the beginning, and was almost an afterthought, turned out to have the highest count of the night. I don't remember how many bats we counted collectively, or what my total was. It was a great night and I hope we collected important data. I'm forever thankful I was able to be a part of it.

Species of the Month

This month we are looking at one of the largest mammals in North America, the moose. Since they are
found in the northern areas, I decided the dead of winter is a great time to profile this great beast. If you
are ever lucky enough to see one, they are best viewed from a distance. Size may be deceiving. They
move quickly and won't hesitate to mess you up!

Moose in Alaska (NPS)

Scientific name: Alces alces

Kingdom: Animalia (animals)

Class: Mammalia (mammals)

Order: Artiodactyla (even-toed mammals)

Range: Northern North America

Habitat: Forested areas near freshwater

Lifespan: 8-12 years on average

Moose shedding his antler velvet (NPS)

Diet: Twigs, bark, and roots of trees- especially aspen, willow, and conifers; aquatic plants during
summer months

Predators: Wolves, bears (black and grizzly), humans

Conservation Status: Species of Special Concern in Michigan; no special protection in other areas

Other Information: The moose is so cool! Or at least it strives to be. Body size, coupled with an
inability to sweat, means they have to seek shade and water in or to avoid overheating during summer
months. Just how big is a moose? They can grow to be 7 feet tall at the shoulder! Males grow antlers
for mating season and shed them afterwards. Those antlers, largest in the animal world, can span 6 feet.
Calf mortality is high- 50%. Due to their size, calves are more likely than adults to suffer predation by
wolves or bears. Adults are armed with sharp hooves, in addition to those huge antlers on males. Moose
disease is a fatal brainworm parasitic infection, also seen in deer. Ticks also present a problem. They
can weaken a moose to the point of death from blood loss.

Mama moose with calf in Michigan (NPS)

Our moose information comes from University of Michigan's Animal Diversity Web.

A Breath of Fresh Air

If you like fresh air, you're probably a big fan of the Clean Air Act and its amendments. While the air in many places is far from ideal, prior to federal legislation it was downright deadly in American cities. A clear gray sky on a summer's day in Philadelphia is a little off-putting, but it beats a smothering fog in the valleys outside Pittsburgh. After the deadly Donora smog in 1948 killed 20 and sickened thousands of others. Federal investigators were asked to come in, and determined that air pollution was in fact the killer, among other factors.

Donora smog, 1948 (Smithsonian)

The government prefers to take baby steps when implementing positive change, rather than jumping in feet first, and tackling air pollution is no exception. The first step came in 1955 with the Air Pollution Control Act, which provided funding for research and led to the Clean Air Act of 1963 and Air Quality Act of 1967. These provided the first air quality monitoring.

Pittsburgh in the 1940s (Citylab)

The Clean Air Act of 1970 was a major step forward. It developed limits on pollution and expanded federal enforcement powers. Among the controls included were auto emissions. States were mandated to implement plans to reduce pollution.
The Amendments of 1990 aimed to reduce air pollution linked to acid rain and ozone depletion.
Looking at a picture of the summer sky over Los Angeles, it might be hard to believe the Clean Air Act is working. However, the number of ugly sky days is lower than prior to enactment. Air quality monitors in California frequently show poor quality, and geography is partly to blame. Ocean breezes carry pollution as far as the mountains, where it gets stuck and sometimes builds up for days.

Los Angeles skyline (LAist)

Acid rain has been reduced as a result on the 1990 amendments. pH testing has shown freshwater pH levels in many areas have risen closer to neutral 7. Pure water is neutral, but in nature, water is rarely pure. Pristine rain is slightly acidic because of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere forming carbonic acid. However, the lowered pH in rivers and lakes nationwide was far lower than caused by carbonic acid. Targets of the 1990 amendments were nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulfur dioxide (SO2). Emissions have been greatly reduced over the last 30 years, and ecosystems are continuing to slowly recover.

Visuals of higher pH meaning less acidic water samples
(National Atmospheric Deposition Program)

Information this week comes the EPA (Clean Air Act overview), Smithsonian Magazine (Donora), and more EPA (acid rain). For a great visual on showing higher pH and lower NOx and SO2, check out the National Atmospheric Deposition Program.

EPA: https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview/evolution-clean-air-act
Smithsonian: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/deadly-donora-smog-1948-spurred-environmental-protection-have-we-forgotten-lesson-180970533/
EPA: https://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/acid-rain-program
nm1 LAist: https://laist.com/2018/10/30/why_las_smog_has_been_extra_smoggy.php
nm2 Citylab: https://www.citylab.com/design/2012/06/what-pittsburgh-looked-when-it-decided-it-had-pollution-problem/2185/
nm3 Smithsonian
nm4 National Atmospheric Deposition Program http://nadp.slh.wisc.edu/data/animaps.aspx

Species of the Month

Wherever you live, fishing season is in full swing. This month we'll profile one of the most common game fishes, the rainbow trout. They can be found in lakes and streams almost everywhere around the world, though introduced to many of them.

Rainbow trout (State Department)

Scientific name: Oncorhynchus mykiss

Kingdom: Animalia (animals)

Class: Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
Order: Salmoniformes 

Range: Pacific coast of North America from Alaska to Mexico

Habitat: Aquatic, some also have a marine phase

Lifespan: 6-8 years average, up to 11 years
Diet: Insects, insect larvae, crustaceans, small fish, algae
Predators: Lampreys, eagles, osprey, herons, mergansers, bears, mink, river otters, seals, sea lions, other fish, humans

Fish on! (NPS)

Conservation Status: No special protection for freshwater only fish; nine populations of steelhead are listed as threatened or endangered

Steelhead (NOAA Fisheries)

Other information: Rainbow trout get their name from a colorful iridescent streak along the sides of its body. State fish and game agencies around the country raise them to stock streams and lakes for fishing season. Stocked trout remain in freshwater; some native trout along the west coast are anadromous (have a saltwater phase) and return to their birthplace to spawn and die. The anadromous trout are called steelhead. Females lay eggs in a gravel nest called a redd. Fertilized eggs hatch after a few weeks, and the hatchling remains attached to the yolk sack as a food source before leaving the redd for the wider world. Young trout tend to stick to slower, shallow water. Young steelhead remain in the stream for up to three years before heading out to sea. Due to habitat degradation and loss, several western steelhead species are listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act. Meanwhile, introduced trout are becoming a problem in some areas. They eat and/or outcompete native fishes such as cutthroat and brook trout. They threaten genetic integrity by hybridizing with native species. They also carry a parasite responsible for whirling disease, which causes deformities that make a fish easier prey.

Steelhead (NOAA Fisheries)

This week's information comes from University of Michigan's Animal Diversity Web and the US State Department, of all places.

Animal 911

In spite of humanity’s destruction of the environment over the last few centuries, most people believe in helping out in ways that don’t require a drastic lifestyle change. One way that people can feel good about the world is wildlife rescue. Every year thousands of good Samaritans encounter orphaned, sick, or injured animals that they deliver to or are picked up by professional wildlife rehabilitators. The goal of wildlife rehab is to provide medical care to the animal and release it back to the wild.

Orphaned raccoons

Many times, an injury is so severe the animal would be unable to return to the wild. In those instances, the animal usually moves to a wild animal park or some other educational organization where it works as an animal ambassador. Animal ambassadors are a way to connect the public to critters they wouldn’t normally get to encounter, especially up close. They work to raise awareness about the wild world around us and offer a glimpse of how these critters live. Many times they can shed some light on the daily challenges they face, in addition to having to deal with people.

Eastern screech owl working as an animal ambassador

I recently visited a wildlife rehab center. Animals are separated by species, although there may be several, such as raccoons, sharing living quarters. The raccoons are quarantined on arrival to check for rabies. All enclosures are covered to keep birds from escaping, or getting in and eating the patients. On the day of my visit, there were raccoons, a beaver, owls, hawks, vultures, squirrels, crows, baby opossums, and songbirds in treatment. In the past, they have rehabbed deer. There is no animal too great or too small for these people to help.

Great horned owl

Orphaned opossums

Blue jay on the mend

Species of the Month

November’s Species of the Month is another animal that is related to Thanksgiving. Last year, we covered the turkey, which is the traditional centerpiece in many a holiday feast. But recall that Massasoit’s braves also arrived at Plymouth with five deer. There are several species of deer in the world, and even in the US there are more than one. But the species found in Massachusetts and much of the country is the white-tailed deer.

Scientific name: Odocoileus virginianus

Kingdom: Animalia (animals)

Class: Mammalia (mammals)

Order: Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates)

Range: Southern Canada to Bolivia in South America

Habitat: Nearly universal in their range: forest, grassland, swamp, and urban areas. Wooded cover and open browse are ideal.

Lifespan: 2-3 years in the wild, on average with a maximum of 20 years.

Diet: Grasses, forbs, shrubs, succulents, twigs and shoots of trees

Predators: Wolves, coyotes, mountain lions, jaguars, bears, humans

Conservation Status: No special protection

Other Information: The white-tailed deer is one of America’s most popular game animals. Hunted nearly to extinction, due to better game management and habitat enhancement (often incidental to loss of habitat for other species) it is believed that there are more deer now than in pre-Columbian times. White-tailed deer are a nuisance in some areas, destroying crops and ornamental plants, striking vehicles, and overconsuming forest resources due to overpopulation. They are also disease vectors, hosting ticks that carry Lyme disease. White-tailed deer also played an important role historically in the US. Native Americans and European settlers alike used the deer as a source of food, clothing, and tools. White-tailed deer mate in the fall, usually in their second year. Births are usually single or double. Fawns can walk immediately and have no scent. Lack of scent, coupled with camouflage pattern that makes them resemble the forest floor, is an adaptation to protect against predators. When startled, the mother will bolt and leave the fawn(s) behind, triggering a predator’s chase instinct. Bucks grow antlers annually prior to mating season. They will spar with other males, using antlers as a weapon and to impress females. Antlers, which are made of bone, grow covered in velvet, which supplies blood to the growing bone tissue. After the velvet is shed, the antlers stop growing and eventually weaken and break off after mating season ends. Summer and winter coats differ in color, ranging from brown to grayish. The underside of the tail is white and is flicked as a warning signal to others, giving the white-tailed deer its name. White-tailed deer is an ungulate and as such, has a multi-chambered stomach like cows. Food is partially broken down, regurgitated, and digested more completely. This allows the deer to break down tough cellulose in plant material to more efficiently gain energy from it.

November’s Species of the Month is another animal that is related to Thanksgiving. Last year, we covered the turkey, which is the traditional centerpiece in many a holiday feast. But recall that Massasoit’s braves also arrived at Plymouth with five deer. There are several species of deer in the world, and even in the US there are more than one. But the species found in Massachusetts and much of the country is the white-tailed deer.

Scientific name: Odocoileus virginianus

Kingdom: Animalia (animals)

Class: Mammalia (mammals)

Order: Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates)

Range: Southern Canada to Bolivia in South America

Habitat: Nearly universal in their range: forest, grassland, swamp, and urban areas. Wooded cover and open browse are ideal.

Lifespan: 2-3 years in the wild, on average with a maximum of 20 years.

Diet: Grasses, forbs, shrubs, succulents, twigs and shoots of trees

Predators: Wolves, coyotes, mountain lions, jaguars, bears, humans

Conservation Status: No special protection

Other Information: The white-tailed deer is one of America’s most popular game animals. Hunted nearly to extinction, due to better game management and habitat enhancement (often incidental to loss of habitat for other species) it is believed that there are more deer now than in pre-Columbian times. White-tailed deer are a nuisance in some areas, destroying crops and ornamental plants, striking vehicles, and overconsuming forest resources due to overpopulation. They are also disease vectors, hosting ticks that carry Lyme disease. White-tailed deer also played an important role historically in the US. Native Americans and European settlers alike used the deer as a source of food, clothing, and tools. White-tailed deer mate in the fall, usually in their second year. Births are usually single or double. Fawns can walk immediately and have no scent. Lack of scent, coupled with camouflage pattern that makes them resemble the forest floor, is an adaptation to protect against predators. When startled, the mother will bolt and leave the fawn(s) behind, triggering a predator’s chase instinct. Bucks grow antlers annually prior to mating season. They will spar with other males, using antlers as a weapon and to impress females. Antlers, which are made of bone, grow covered in velvet, which supplies blood to the growing bone tissue. After the velvet is shed, the antlers stop growing and eventually weaken and break off after mating season ends. Summer and winter coats differ in color, ranging from brown to grayish. The underside of the tail is white and is flicked as a warning signal to others, giving the white-tailed deer its name. White-tailed deer is an ungulate and as such, has a multi-chambered stomach like cows. Food is partially broken down, regurgitated, and digested more completely. This allows the deer to break down tough cellulose in plant material to more efficiently gain energy from it.November’s Species of the Month is another animal that is related to Thanksgiving. Last year, we covered the turkey, which is the traditional centerpiece in many a holiday feast. But recall that Massasoit’s braves also arrived at Plymouth with five deer. There are several species of deer in the world, and even in the US there are more than one. But the species found in Massachusetts and much of the country is the white-tailed deer.

Scientific name: Odocoileus virginianus

Kingdom: Animalia (animals)

Class: Mammalia (mammals)

Order: Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates)

Range: Southern Canada to Bolivia in South America

Habitat: Nearly universal in their range: forest, grassland, swamp, and urban areas. Wooded cover and open browse are ideal.

Lifespan: 2-3 years in the wild, on average with a maximum of 20 years.

Diet: Grasses, forbs, shrubs, succulents, twigs and shoots of trees

Predators: Wolves, coyotes, mountain lions, jaguars, bears, humans

Conservation Status: No special protection

Other Information: The white-tailed deer is one of America’s most popular game animals. Hunted nearly to extinction, due to better game management and habitat enhancement (often incidental to loss of habitat for other species) it is believed that there are more deer now than in pre-Columbian times. White-tailed deer are a nuisance in some areas, destroying crops and ornamental plants, striking vehicles, and overconsuming forest resources due to overpopulation. They are also disease vectors, hosting ticks that carry Lyme disease. White-tailed deer also played an important role historically in the US. Native Americans and European settlers alike used the deer as a source of food, clothing, and tools. White-tailed deer mate in the fall, usually in their second year. Births are usually single or double. Fawns can walk immediately and have no scent. Lack of scent, coupled with camouflage pattern that makes them resemble the forest floor, is an adaptation to protect against predators. When startled, the mother will bolt and leave the fawn(s) behind, triggering a predator’s chase instinct. Bucks grow antlers annually prior to mating season. They will spar with other males, using antlers as a weapon and to impress females. Antlers, which are made of bone, grow covered in velvet, which supplies blood to the growing bone tissue. After the velvet is shed, the antlers stop growing and eventually weaken and break off after mating season ends. Summer and winter coats differ in color, ranging from brown to grayish. The underside of the tail is white and is flicked as a warning signal to others, giving the white-tailed deer its name. White-tailed deer is an ungulate and as such, has a multi-chambered stomach like cows. Food is partially broken down, regurgitated, and digested more completely. This allows the deer to break down tough cellulose in plant material to more efficiently gain energy from it.

November’s Species of the Month is another animal that is related to Thanksgiving. Last year, we covered the turkey, which is the traditional centerpiece in many a holiday feast. But recall that Massasoit’s braves also arrived at Plymouth with five deer. There are several species of deer in the world, and even in the US there are more than one. But the species found in Massachusetts and much of the country is the white-tailed deer.

Scientific name: Odocoileus virginianus

Kingdom: Animalia (animals)

Class: Mammalia (mammals)

Order: Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates)

Range: Southern Canada to Bolivia in South America

Habitat: Nearly universal in their range: forest, grassland, swamp, and urban areas. Wooded cover and open browse are ideal.

Lifespan: 2-3 years in the wild, on average with a maximum of 20 years.

Diet: Grasses, forbs, shrubs, succulents, twigs and shoots of trees

Predators: Wolves, coyotes, mountain lions, jaguars, bears, humans

Conservation Status: No special protection

White-tailed doe resting in the cover of a forest

Other Information: The white-tailed deer is one of America’s most popular game animals. Hunted nearly to extinction, due to better game management and habitat enhancement (often incidental to loss of habitat for other species) it is believed that there are more deer now than in pre-Columbian times. White-tailed deer are a nuisance in some areas, destroying crops and ornamental plants, striking vehicles, and overconsuming forest resources due to overpopulation. They are also disease vectors, hosting ticks that carry Lyme disease. White-tailed deer also played an important role historically in the US. Native Americans and European settlers alike used the deer as a source of food, clothing, and tools. White-tailed deer mate in the fall, usually in their second year. Births are usually single or double. Fawns can walk immediately and have no scent. Lack of scent, coupled with camouflage pattern that makes them resemble the forest floor, is an adaptation to protect against predators. When startled, the mother will bolt and leave the fawn(s) behind, triggering a predator’s chase instinct. Bucks grow antlers annually prior to mating season. They will spar with other males, using antlers as a weapon and to impress females. Antlers, which are made of bone, grow covered in velvet, which supplies blood to the growing bone tissue. After the velvet is shed, the antlers stop growing and eventually weaken and break off after mating season ends. Summer and winter coats differ in color, ranging from brown to grayish. The underside of the tail is white and is flicked as a warning signal to others, giving the white-tailed deer its name. White-tailed deer is an ungulate and as such, has a multi-chambered stomach like cows. Food is partially broken down, regurgitated, and digested more completely. This allows the deer to break down tough cellulose in plant material to more efficiently gain energy from it.

Information this month comes once again from University of Michigan’s Animal Diversity Web. 

A mother and two fawns browse in edge habitat.
A buck is behind and uphill.

White-tailed buck (Pennsylvania Game Commission)

Road Trip Adventure- Wind Cave

As promised, this week we are going inside Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota. This little gem is separated from Custer State Park by just a cattle guard. Eastern tallgrass and western shortgrass prairies mingle with Rocky Mountain and boreal forests here, all on top of the largest cave system in the US. Enjoy another story from the road.

I was looking forward to visiting Wind Cave NP, even before I learned just how extensive the cave system is. I was even more excited when I got to the visitor center and saw black-footed ferret on display. Shortly after crossing the cattle guard from Custer State Park, I saw a little weasel run halfway across the road, then turn around and run back. In the visitor center, I immediately recognized the black-footed ferret as the little critter I saw. I was excited because that little guy is one of the rarest mammals in North America. 

Black-footed ferret (NPS photo)

Thought to be extinct, wildlife managers recently began reintroducing the black-footed ferret after a colony was found in Wyoming. They began a captive breeding program and ferrets were reintroduced in several locations in the west, including Wind Cave, but only four colonies are considered self-sustaining. Threats the ferret include habitat loss, loss of prey (prairie dogs), and diseases such as plague and canine distemper.

Moving on to happier topics, I was delighted to learn the National Park Service offered a variety of cave tours. All tours are ranger-led, because with over 100 miles of known passages any many more miles yet to be entered, they don’t want a bunch of people roaming around unattended. I volunteered to enter the cave last and act as our caboose. 

Wind Cave's largest natural entrance

The tour I chose was the “Natural Entrance” tour, because it is shortest and most frequently offered. The cave’s largest natural opening is a very small hole that only a child could fit into. We entered the cave through a door a few feet away from the natural opening. It was put there in the early 20^th century when what is today’s national park was then a private homestead. The cave has many different formations, but the most impressive is the rare boxwork formation. Boxwork is thought to form from mineral deposits left behind when water seeps into cracks in the rock, remaining even after the rock erodes or dissolves away. At the end of our tour, I was proud to report that we didn’t lose anyone. 

Boxwork, a rare cave formation

Close-up of some of Wind Cave's intricacies

Inside Wind Cave

Back above, I enjoyed the panorama of Black Hills, prairie, and pine forest. I even saw a few bison lazing the day away. 

Lazy bison

I also noticed some clouds, and remembered how Wind Cave got its name. In the early 20^th century a young boy was roaming the prairie when he heard a rushing noise. He located the cave’s natural opening. The noise he heard was wind rushing out. It blew the hat off his head. He thought it was a cool trick, so he brought his friends the next day. Instead of blowing his hat away, the wind sucked the hat into the cave. The direction of the wind is based on air pressure, and the wind was blowing in when our tour began, a sign of storms in the area. Not long after we left the park, we had a thunderstorm. The cave was true to its word. 

A storm's a-brewin'

Watch this video of a park ranger and Lakota Sioux member telling the story of her people’s emergence from Wind Cave. 

This week's information on black-footed ferrets comes from US Fish and Wildlife Service, the agency overseeing implementation of conservation plans for endangered and threatened terrestrial species. National Park staff frequently request that visitors report sightings of certain animals. Mount Rainier wants us to report mountain lion and bear sightings. Olympic wants us to report fisher sightings. Wind Cave wants us to report black-footed ferret sightings, which I did. The rangers were excited to hear about my sighting because ferrets haven't been seen in the area where I saw mine. Citizen science at its finest!

Bats and White Nose Syndrome

Bats are a misunderstood and unreasonably feared critter. Some species rid our skies of pest insects, while others pollinate crops and other plants. Bat poop (guano) is a rich fertilizer. Attitudes are changing as people begin to appreciate the ecosystem services bats provide but now they face another threat, White Nose Syndrome.

White Nose Syndrome (WNS) is a fungal infection that is destroying bat colonies at an unprecedented rate. The fungus Pseudogymnoscus destructans was likely introduced from Europe inadvertently. It thrives in the cold strikes bats when they are hibernating. Bats hibernate to conserve energy when their food source (insects or fruit) is unavailable, but the infection causes them to wake from hibernation. Being awake increases metabolism and other bodily functions, and the bats starve to death because of burning through whatever energy they had stored to make it through the winter. To answer your next question, “How does being awake kill a bat?”, most of the calories you need in a day are just to keep you alive- breathing, circulation, and the biggest energy consumer- temperature regulation.

WNS spreads from direct contact with an infected bat or from surface contamination inside a bat cave. People can transport the fungus from cave to cave, so spelunkers must decontaminate clothing, shoes, and equipment in between caves. 

Bats infected with WNS (National Park Service photo)

WNS has killed millions of bats in the eastern parts of the US and Canada is spreading west. Last year the first case was discovered here in Washington. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife conducted a bat count a few weeks ago at Northwest Trek as the beginning of an effort to monitor bat colonies and WNS. A follow-up count took place this past weekend and I took part.

The goal is to count the number of bats seen leaving and entering the nest. Exits minus entries is the total number of bats seen. The tricky part is seeing them as it gets darker. I did OK with this until about 9:20. The freaky part is not seeing the bats until they are inches from your face, then they turn away at the last second, mostly to my left. I could their wings flapping as they passed by my head.

By establishing a baseline this year the state hopes to track population trends that could indicate colonies in trouble. This can be tricky, though. Bats sometimes tend to not roost in the same location night after night. For example, the site I counted was unmonitored in the previous count. The only reason I was posted there was because on the way into Northwest Trek we heard the bats making sounds inside the park entryway. My total for the night was around 60 bats. Other sites inside the park had a lower count than during the previous survey. It is possible that my site had an increase since the last survey, but that is unknown since no one counted there the first time. 

Me counting bats

In just six years since its introduction, WNS had killed millions of bats with a mortality rate up to 100% in some colonies, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Fighting back will be a long process, but the key first step is monitoring. I am glad I had a chance to take part in the beginning of what I hope will be a successful fight. WNS info this week comes from the National Park Service, one of many partners in the search for a cure.

NPS: https://www.nps.gov/articles/what-is-white-nose-syndrome.htm

USFWS: http://www.batcon.org/pdfs/USFWS_WNS_Mortality_2012_NR_FINAL.pdf