ST. LOUIS —
Biologists are tracking the Indiana bat this summer at sites in Missouri and Illinois, hoping to gather information that they can use to help boost the endangered species.
The bat hibernates in caves in the winter and summers in forested areas, most frequently in the central United States.
But there is a new concern, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. White-nose syndrome has killed more than 6 million bats in four Canadian provinces and 19 U.S. states since it was first detected in 2006 in New York’s Adirondack Mountains. In April, the disease was documented in Missouri — the first confirmed case west of the Mississippi River.
The disease could spell trouble for the Indiana bat. The tracking effort is being led by Army Corps of Engineers officials, who hope to turn around the population decline.
“We haven’t had white nose in the Indiana bat’s range for many years yet, so we don’t know what their declines are going to be like,” said Janet Tyburec, 45, a biologist for Bat Conservation and Management Inc. of Carlisle, Pa., who is helping the corps study the bat.
In 2009, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimated the Indiana bat population at 387,000, less than half the number when the species was listed as endangered in 1967.
Tyburec and other biologists are spending time on Chouteau Island in the Mississippi River near St. Louis. They also plan visits to sites in Pike County, Mo., Calhoun County, Ill., and Jersey County, Ill.
“Let’s say we find the bats in a nice cottonwood patch, since they like to roost under the sloughing bark,” said Ben McGuire, 26, a wildlife biologist with the corps. “If the cottonwood patch is fairly young, we can go in there and do some supplemental plantings so there’s a diverse community for them.”
One evening last week, Tyburec and field technician Brenna Long, 27, used pulleys attached to metal poles to hoist three braided nylon nets 27 feet high in hopes of capturing bats for the study, positioning them between two ponds.
“Bats like to drink out of pooled water, not rushing water,” Tyburec said. “And one of the first things they do every night is go get a drink.”
A short time later they found several bats ensnared in the nets, although the species wasn’t the one they sought. These were big browns, a majority of them lactating females.
Still, they were examined. At the processing station, Long pulled on fresh surgical-type gloves over thicker ones as she measured the bats’ forearms, their weight and record their gender and reproductive conditions before releasing them.
Tyburec and Long said they previously had been bitten. As a precaution, they had gotten pre-exposure rabies shots and regular boosters.
“Rabies is always fatal, so taking a risk is just not worth it,” Tyburec said.
Indiana bats have been losing summer habitat because of urbanization and forestry practices. A slow reproductive cycle is compounding the problem, Tyburec said. The females generally have one baby a year. The young take about two years to reach sexual maturity, and first-year young have about a 50 percent mortality rate.
“It’s really tough to be a bat,” Tyburec said.
Local News
Effort seeks information to help endangered bat
- Local News
-
-
VIDEO: Restore Joplin designer stepping up to help Moore tornado victims
The designer of the Restore Joplin T-shirts who helped raise nearly a quarter-million dollars for Joplin in the wake of the 2011 tornado has put together a similar design to raise money for residents of Moore, Okla.
-
Carl Junction officials weigh cost of proposed skate park
The public facilities and planning committee of Carl Junction met Tuesday to discuss plans for a proposed skate park near the site of the old public works barn on Water Street. The committee reviewed a design from American Ramp Co. of Joplin to get what committee chairman Tim Smith said was a “rough idea of layout and cost” for the project.
-
Mike Pound: Bernie’s in Avilla a classic tavern
I have a fondness for taverns. When I think of a tavern, I think of a small place with a simple bar, a pool table or two, a jukebox and a kitchen.
-
Jasper County approves renovation, building plans
Work is expected to start within two weeks on a project to renovate a county owned building near the courthouse for the Jasper County sheriff’s office.
-
Federal, state leaders salute Joplin’s recovery
A deadly May twister may have punched a hole in Joplin and Duquesne two years ago, but the resolve to repair it will help other communities stand strong when they face similar disasters. That was the message of state and national diginitaries to a crowd of about 2,500 who observed the second anniversary of Joplin’s devastating May 22, 2011, storm during a ceremony Wednesday in Cunningham Park.
-
Banner from Joplin to be sent to Moore residents
A giant vinyl banner adorned with heartfelt messages from Joplin tornado survivors to the residents of Moore, Okla., became a centerpiece of Wednesday’s observance of the two-year anniversary of the May 22, 2011, tornado.
-
Hired hand won’t face death penalty in Vernon County murder case
The state has agreed not to seek the death penalty against Jeremy L. Maples in the murder of Belinda J. Beisly, but prosecutors have yet to take the option off the table for the victim’s husband, Bob T. Beisly II.
-
Families in Moore, Joplin linked by disasters
Zach Woodcock knew the storms were going to be bad on May 22, 2011, so turning on the Weather Channel was a natural. What he saw filled him with fear. The Moore resident’s family lived in Joplin, Mo.
-
Community gearing up for two-year anniversary ceremony this afternoon
With the playground full of children, it could be any other day at Joplin’s Cunningham Park, but the white tents popping up and neat rows of white chairs lined up nearby indicate something more is happening today.
-
SMB sets up fund for Moore, Okla., storm victims
Southwest Missouri Bank has set up an account so area residents can donate to storm victims in Moore, Okla., which was hit by an EF-5 tornado on May 20.
- More Local News Headlines
-
VIDEO: Restore Joplin designer stepping up to help Moore tornado victims
