• © Greg Horne
  • © Greg Horne
  • © Greg Horne
  • © Christian Stenner
  • © Cory Olson
  • © Cory Olson

Get Involved

We need cavers to help us monitor caves for bat activity. More specifically we need help installing acoustic loggers that detect bat calls in caves. The data collected by the acoustic loggers is used to tell us if there are bats using the cave, can help us tell what species of bats are present, as well as how the bats are using a cave and how this use changes seasonally. Acoustic loggers are generally placed in caves in fall and retrieved in spring. In addition temperature/humidity loggers are often installed at the same time as acoustic loggers to understand the climate preferences of hibernating bats.


How do I get started?


Step 1: Get in touch and tell us where you are planning to go caving. If the site(s) you are planning to visit have potential for bat activity, we will send you data loggers with installation instructions. Highest priority sites include large, remote cave systems or mines with previous bat sightings and/or sits with high potential for bat use. 

Step 2: Complete and submit a volunteer release form (download PDF) and send by email or mail.

Step 3: During your mine/cave visit, fill out this reporting form (download PDF). Photos are always appreciated and sample collection may also be useful. 

Step 4: Once you get home, fill out this reimbursement form (download PDF) and we will refund you for a portion of your travel costs ($0.485 per kilometre). 

Step 5: Send your forms and photos to batcaver@wcs.org 

This is a great way to get involved in some cave bat science and will greatly extend the reach and scope of this program.  For more information, contact us.

IMPORTANT: All forms must be saved onto your computer and opened in Adobe Reader for them to function correctly and for any information you have entered to be saved. 


Instructions


Roost Logger Deployment Guide

Temperature/Humidity Logger Deployment Guidelines

Collection protocols:  bat carcasses, skulls and guano


Watch this Data Logger Deployment Video:

Protect Bats

Bats are very sensitive to disturbance while hibernating. If you see hibernating bats, leave the area immediately.

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Clean Gear

Decontaminating your gear between caving trips can prevent the spread of WNS.



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Find Bats

Install a bat monitoring device in a cave or mine when you go caving.



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Updates

DECONTAMINATION FOR CAVERS AND MINE EXPLORERS

The BatCaver program has released a video (see below) demonstrating one easy method of decontaminating caving equipment after exiting a cave or mine. Our BC coordinator walks the viewer step-by-step through one of his common decon procedures: immersing his caving equipment in 60-degree Celsius water for at least 20 minutes. The video is intended to help increase the likelihood that more people will follow recommended procedures by simplifying the procedure that reduces the risks of inadvertently transporting White-nose Syndrome (Pd) spores from one region to another.


White-nose Syndrome has continued spreading westward through Manitoba. It has also been found in Washington State since 2016.  As this highly transmissible and fatal disease of bats continues its spread, adherence to proper decontamination protocol is increasingly important, especially among anyone who may enter multiple caves or mines in a wide geographic range, and anyone operating in the Fraser Valley and US border regions.

 

Additional decontamination procedures can be found under the decontamination protocol link on the BatCaver Resources page. A map of WNS affected areas of North America (2019) is found on the Threats tab.


Video

White-nose Syndrome (WNS) is a fungal disease that has caused up to 100% bat mortality in cave hibernacula in Eastern Canada and United States. Follow these simple and critical decontamination protocols to keep bats safe as you explore. 

DECONTAMINATION OF CAVING GEAR AND EQUIPMENT

DECONTAMINATION PROTOCOLS FOR VISITING BAT HIBERNACULA

Watch this video in French.

© 2020 Wildlife Conservation Society