Developing and evaluating bat mitigation strategies

This multi-year project will study bat maternity colonies in the Stave River Watershed to understand how roost selection (i.e. bat boxes vs. buildings) affects bat health and reproduction. Sentinel sites will be monitored to evaluate the newest, most promising, White Nose Syndrome mitigation strategies for western North America. The results will have broad applicability across watersheds to inform mitigation strategies for bats. Bat habitat has been compromised at hydroelectric developments, as riparian habitats have flooded. This project will benefit the Little Brown and Yuma Bat species.

Update: 200 bats inoculated

About 200 bats in a Stave Lake colony have been successfully inoculated against white-nose syndrome—a disease causing mass die-offs in bat populations—through an innovative project by the Wildlife Conservation Society Canada with funding from the FWCP. Bat roosts were sprinkled with a probiotic-laden clay powder that then transferred to the bats’ wings, offering them protection.