Fighting to save endangered bats
Monitoring is underway in P.E.I. to understand the spread of white-nose syndrome
Prince Edward Island researchers are calling on residents to help monitor and preserve endangered bat populations.
The Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative (CWHC) at the Atlantic Veterinary College (AVC), in partnership with the province's fish and wildlife division, is tracking the endangered northern myotis and other bat species.
Residents can contribute to bat conservation efforts by reporting sightings through the Atlantic Bat Hotline, protecting natural habitats, and participating in emergence counts to monitor bat colonies year-to-year.
"Emergence counts are really neat because anyone can do them," said Darrian Washinger, an Atlantic bat conservation project technician with the CWHC, in a July 18 interview with Saltwire.
"It's just counting bats at dusk. You can get involved by calling those in, and we can connect you with a local watershed group or provide advice if you have enough people in your household."
Washinger said there has been a 90 per cent decline in bat populations, including little brown myotis, northern myotis and tri-coloured bats due to white-nose syndrome and other threats.
“The focus has really been on assessing our current populations and whether they are recovering. Unfortunately, we haven't seen any significant signs of recovery," he said, adding that some species are doing better than others.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Monitoring bat populations is crucial for understanding the spread of white-nose syndrome, assessing population health and protecting habitats for these endangered species.
For monitoring, the CWHC team is deploying bat acoustic detectors and trail cameras in forested areas across P.E.I. to locate northern myotis roosts.
Heather Laiskonis, an executive director with P.E.I. Watershed Alliance, said there are programs where they’ll pay for a cage over an abandoned well, which allows bats to get in and out without harm.
“Because P.E.I. lacks natural caves, these wells are critical hibernation sites,” she said.
“Homeowners can also install bat houses on the south-facing side of their property to help control bugs.”
Washinger said it seems as though the situation on P.E.I. might be slightly less severe, thanks to unique hibernation sites like hand-dug wells.
“However, we still need more research to confirm this,” Washinger said.
For homeowners looking to protect bat habitats practical steps include preserving old trees and natural habitats on their properties and avoiding the use of pesticides.
Planting night-blooming flowers can help attract insects that bats feed on. People who have a body of water on their property can ensure there is an exit for bats that may fall in.
To prevent unnecessary harm, researchers ask to avoid using glue traps, which can be fatal to bats.
“We’re hopeful that continued monitoring and targeted conservation efforts will eventually show positive signs of recovery for these endangered bat species,” Laiskonis said.
ATTITUDE SHIFT
Rebecca Ramos-armstrong who’s a fromour monitoring specialist with P.E.I. Watershed Alliance said she has seen an attitude shift from the public since the organization started bat monitoring in 2020.
“The general population used to be very hesitant about being close to bats,” said Ramos-armstrong.
“But as time goes on it seems more people are eager to learn about bats and put up a bat house to help with their local bat populations, if anything at least to reduce the mosquito population.”
Washinger said all bats in Canada are insectivores, playing a crucial role in controlling insect populations.
“Without them, we see a huge increase in mosquitoes and other insects that eat our crops and defoliate forests,” she said.
Ramos-armstrong said bats seem to be quite active in central P.E.I., the area known as a potato belt.
“It’s great for the farmers, more guano, which is a fertilizer for their fields, and bats are also great pest control as they eat a lot of insects that may disturb the farmers’ crops,” she said.
Washinger said the little brown myotis, which was likely the most abundant on the Island before white-nose syndrome, seems to have plateaued after the initial decline.
“We’re hoping to see signs of recovery in the next few years. Meanwhile, we are much less confident about the northern myotis.”