Presentation Abstract
Student's Name: Jessie Bouley '24
Co-registrant Names: Maleena Davis
Type of Presentation: Poster
Presentation Title: "Acoustic Survey of Bats at the United States Army Corps of Engineers Edward MacDowell Lake (Peterborough, Hillsborough County, New Hampshire) with an Emphasis on the Northern Long-Eared Bat (Myotis septentrionalis)"
Abstract:
The United States Army Corps of Engineer’s Edward MacDowell Dam (EMD) facility is located in southwest New Hampshire (Peterborough, Hillsborough County). In 2019, as part of a new forest management plan, EMD staff requested a mist net survey to document the presence/absence and distribution of bats within the facility property. Capture success was low during this initial survey. A total of ten bats was captured during 16 net nights. Due to low capture success, acoustic surveys were initiated during the 2020 season and continued through 2023. The 2023 acoustic survey focused on bat activity, specifically for the northern long-eared bat (NLEB; federally endangered) within four wooded areas under consideration for forest management (clear cut and selective harvest). Surveys occurred from late April through late August. Calls from each of the eight species known from New Hampshire were documented during the 2023 survey, with calls from the NLEB observed in each forest stand, and throughout the survey period. These data should allow for better forest management plans related to the conservation of bats at the EMD. Future work should add mistnetting survey protocols within the forest stands to provide additional data on NLEB activity, including the presence of female maternity colonies.
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