OBJECTIVE:

1.0: Find Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis) maternity sites by tracking females from hibernation at the Williams Lake Mine Complex (near Kingston, NY) through migration.

1.1: Secondary objectives include identify female Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis) movement patterns, roost preferences, and foraging activity during migration.

METHOD:

2.0 Trapping
Harp traps will be installed in one or more mine entrances, usually at or just inside the dripline. The traps will be checked and bats processed at a time interval determined by capture rates, usually every 30 to 90 minutes. To prevent the bats from being exposed to predators or inclement weather, traps will not be left unattended for longer periods of time. To minimize the impact of disturbance on the hibernacula, trapping will only take place when BCM is trying to capture a Myotis sodalis to affix a transmitter to. The mine complex contains approximately 25,000 sodalis, therefore capturing suitable females should present little difficulty. The complex will be trapped beginning April 6, 2001.

2.1 Sodalis Preperation
Captured sodalis will be banded, weighed, and measured. Any sodalis to be tracked will also be photo-documented. All other bat species may be banded at the request of the NY Division of Wildlife. An individual Indiana bat must weigh at least 5.8 grams to be outfitted with a transmitter, however initially we will only use individuals of 6.0g or greater. If difficulty is had in capturing heavier females, individuals of 5.8g and above may be tracked. The selected individuals will be fitted with either a 0.54 or 0.8 gram VHF transmitter. The varying weight is due to different manufactures and limited availability of some models. The transmitters life expectancies range from 15 to 28 days.

2.2 Tracking
Once released, a bat will be monitored by two or more vehicle based receivers. Between four and eight BCM staff will be in the field from April 6th to May 15th .

For the life of it’s transmitters each bat will be monitored every evening until it has roosted for the night, however bats often require continuous monitoring or periodic spot checks throughout the night. Time and activity logs will be kept by each individual receiver, these logs will be the base data from which each bat's movement pattern is drawn.

Two or more bats may be tracked or monitored simultaneously. The decisions to track additional bats at any given time will be made based on the movements of the bat (or bats) currently being tracked.

2.3 Aerial Tracking
A limited amount of aerial tracking is available, however its deployment is based on many factors such as remaining transmitter life, distance from the hibernacula, and number of other bats with active transmitters. Given our previous tracking experiences and the extensive road network within the project area, aerial tracking should not be necessary but is a viable option that will be used if the need arises.

2.4 Roost Data
The individual roost trees will be surveyed and clearly marked with tree making paint and metal tags when appropriate. General data on the surrounding habitat will be collected if permission can be obtained to enter the property. As some bats stay at individual roosts for only one day before moving on, it may occasionally be impossible to obtain permission to enter the site to do a complete survey.

2.5 Agency Coordination
We will coordinate with state and federal agencies interested in assisting with tracking bats in their respective states. The New York Division of Wildlife, Pennsylvania Game Commission, Connecticut DEP Wildlife Division, and Vermont Fish and Wildlife have already pledged their support. Bats who’s transmitters are near the end of their expected battery life and who appear to be in a predictable foraging/roosting pattern may be tracked solely by cooperating agencies in order to enable the BCM team to resume trapping and tracking additional bats.

2.6 Report
A draft report will be prepared and submitted to the Client by November 1, 2001. The draft report will include but is not limited to:

o Summary of project and general results
o Trapping results and banding data
o Individual report on each sodalis tracked
o Topographic maps depicting migration routes, roost locations,
and foraging notes where appropriate.
o Preliminary roost observations/data