11 Apr URGENT: Please keep your eyes out for dead bats!
Posted at 10:32h
in News
You may have already heard about the recent detection of White Nose Syndrome (WNS) in a Little Brown Myotis Washington State. This disease has devastated bat populations in eastern North America but it is the first confirmed case close to BC. We are trying to determine whether or not this disease has reached BC and we need your help.
White-nose-syndrome
Could you please:
1) Keep your eyes out for freshly dead bat carcasses. If you find a dead bat, don’t touch it with your bare hands. Put it in a plastic bag and label it with your name, the date, and the location you found it. Then email/call us immediately at 1-855-922-2287 ext. 14 or juliet@kootenaybats.com (West Kootenay) or leighanne@kootenaybats.com (East Kootenay). We will arrange to pick it up or get it shipped to a health lab immediately.
2) Document the date you first see bats return to a roost on your property. This information will help us know when/how to monitor for WNS next spring.
3) If you have a bat colony on your property, lay down cardboard or plastic (not black) where the droppings usually accumulate to collect a fresh guano sample. Once you have fresh guano from this year (about 1 tsp), put it in an envelope labelled with your name, date, address and contact information. Contact us so we can arrange mailing it to the lab.
4) Participate in the Annual Bat Count. It is extremely important to get baseline data on our bat populations this summer. By monitoring your bat colony, you can help us collect this valuable information. For details, see: http://www.bcbats.ca/index.php/get-involved/participate-in-the-bc-bat-count