A study underway through mid-October in Iowa will examine how Northern Long Eared Bats migrate within the state. Piper Roby is a research director with Copperhead Environmental Consulting, the Kentucky firm that’s conducting the study for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Roby says they’re looking at how bats migrate and how to protect their habitat while dealing with the deadly White Nose syndrome.
The study is conducted by placing trackers the size of a pinky fingernail on bats during the day. At night, the research team tracks bats with an airplane that flies about fifteen-hundred to two-thousand feet above the ground.
Roby says this study will hopefully provide some answers on how to protect bats and slow the drastic decline of the nation’s bat population, which is impacting many areas including crop production.
The bat study will cover about eight Iowa counties, including the cities of Iowa City, Waterloo, Hampton, Mason City and Clarion. The study will also look into how bats interact with Iowa’s wind farms.
