Trust Species & Habitats

Branch Chief: Patty Stevens

FORT scientists in the Trust Species and Habitats branch conduct research and provide technical assistance on the ecology, habitat requirements, distribution, and abundance of trust species, including inventory and monitoring, development of reintroduction and restoration techniques, modifying or developing new statistical methods for data analyses, and utilizing technologies such as molecular genetics and stable isotopes to address a wide range of ecological questions.

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In the News

FORT to Host White-Nose Syndrome/Bat Population Modeling and Monitoring Workshop

Photo of 3 hibernating bats in a site affected by White Nose Syndrome. The bat on the right is covered with the characteristic fungus. Photo by Al Hicks, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Used with permission.

Of the many threats North American bats are facing, White-Nose Syndrome (WNS) may be one of the worst, causing large-scale and rapid declines in many species of bats. Resource managers need better ways of documenting current impacts of WNS and other threats, estimating future impacts, and developing mitigation measures to prevent or minimize future impacts. State and federal agencies also need to establish best practices for monitoring bat populations of conservation concern at various spatial scales in response to WNS and other stressors. FORT is hosting a workshop to develop methods for monitoring and mathematically modeling bat populations in the context of the WNS crisis on 17-19 April 2012 in Fort Collins. The workshop will bring together bat researchers, population modelers, and experts in the field of wildlife population monitoring to design statistically robust and logistically feasible methods for monitoring changes in bat populations in response to WNS, treatment measures, and conservation and recovery efforts. The workshop is jointly funded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Bat Conservation International, with organizational and in-kind support from the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Forest Service, and the National Park Service.

White-Nose Syndrome Threatens the Survival of Hibernating Bats in North America

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