Welcoem to posts!!
in the future - u will be able to do some more stuff here,,,!! like pat catgirl- i mean um yeah... for now u can only see others's posts :c
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If you have watched our videos on the hibernation sites in the Badlands of Alberta - one of the species that uses these landscapes is this little guy - the Western Small-footed Myotis (Myotis ciliolabrum, MYCI for short). MYCI are TINY bats! 4-6 grams they are about the size of your thumb. We captured some in Dinosaur Provincial Park and they were flying around our mist-nets like little night-time butterflies! (but faster than butterflies). The deep erosion crevices in the riverbanks in the Badlands are used as roosting habitat by these bats in both summer and winter. The winter crevices are likely much deeper - providing stable, cold temperatures above freezing, so the spaces they use are likely below the frost line. It is such a difficult type of habitat to access, we really don't have a good understanding of what they are using exactly. Our winter work in this landscape involves passively monitoring them with acoustic detectors (because they will take flight in winter periodically and yell aka echolocate during their short flights). Why do they fly in winter? We don't know for sure! So many bat questions to answer. (Photos by Jason Headley)
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A lot of bat content was shared on FB & Tw this past week - we will try and repost some of it here over the next month. So, long to October! Did you celebrate bat week 2024?
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"The state of the bats in North America" report is now published & it doesn't look good for bats. 153 species (CAN/USA/MEX) and 53% are at a moderate to very high risk of extinction in the next 15 years. #Frightening #ActionNeeded
BATS NEED FRIENDS.
Open Access publication here:
nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nyas.…
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October for Bats. Check out www.albertabats.ca for our fundraiser this month! Throw a party during bat week and raise some funds for the bat program! Lots of ideas for running your own fundraiser to benefit bats. Or you can simply donate to the program. #BatsNeedFriends
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It's World Mental Health Day! Walking quietly in nature is good for your mental and physical well-being. Conservation of wild spaces supports wildlife! It's a win-win to keep wild spaces wild. Bats need old, mature forests and healthy ecosystems to thrive. Go for a walk and imagine you are a bat. Where are you going? Where are you flying? Where is your watering hole? Where would you find the bugs? Things to ponder on your next walk. Just go. Do it. #MentalHealthDay
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Officially, there are now 1,482 bat species on the planet! Bats are the 2nd largest order of mammals (Chiroptera) after the Rodents. 1/4 of all mammals on the planet are bats. Diverse & essential!
See www.albertabats.ca for more information on bat conservation and how to support our bat work!
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It's #Leptember! Time to celebrate the Lepidoptera which includes a favourite bat snack - MOTHS! #FunFacts #FeedTheBats #Moths
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There is a new study out looking at the effects of the massive loss of bats to white-nose syndrome on agriculture and human health. In areas that have lost their bats, pesticide use went way up and subsequently, infant mortality rates in those areas also rose. Incredible piece of work. Nice article on CBC summarizing it.
www.cbc.ca/news/science/bats-north-america-researc…
10 - 1
It's #Leptember! And it's a good time to take a look at moths because these rank amongst the top bat snack items! The beautiful red one is a Scarlet-winged Lichen Moth, the cream/striped one is a Spotted Tussock Tiger Moth, the beautiful brown and white one with the rosy underwing patches is a Twin-spotted Sphinx and the little folded up brown one is a Delicate Silver. Many of our moth species rely on native trees and shrubs and grasses for their larval stage. Planting native plants supports the bottom of the food chain - and this helps all of the aerial insectivores including birds and bats! (all moth photos by Jason Headley).
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The Alberta Community Bat Program raising awareness of bat conservation issues in Alberta and working to improve how this group is managed in the province.