Our ninth edition of The Roost Report addresses the challenges of bat population recovery. What happens when numbers of bats dwindle to less than 10% of what was there originally? That’s a scenario we are facing with a few bat species from current threats. (Three pages – click at the bottom to advance)
What happens when populations become rare? (The Roost Report #009 ) Read More »
All bats in Alberta are now protected under the Alberta Wildlife Act. It is illegal to harm to kill any bat in the province without a permit. Read the factsheet from the Alberta Government for more information.
Alberta Government Updates Protections for Bats Read More »
Today the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) announced that the Hoary Bat, Eastern Red Bat and Silver-haired Bat have been assessed as Endangered in Canada. These species are among the most common bats in Alberta, but alarming numbers are being killed by wind turbines. We are at risk of losing these species, especially given the exponential growth occurring in the wind energy industry. While wind turbines are the primary cause of this situation, other threats, such as habitat loss, climate change, and insect declines are likely contributing to their decline.
There are ways to mitigate the threat posed by wind turbines — bats are only killed at night, and mostly during the fall on nights with low wind speeds. Not operating turbines during these conditions can greatly reduce fatalities. We urgently need action from governments and industry to ensure that necessary changes are made to ensure ‘green energy’ is actually green.
This listing now means that 5 of the 9 bat species that occur in Alberta have been formally assessed as Endangered.
Read the full press release from COSEWIC here: https://www.cosewic.ca/index.php/en-ca/news-and-events/press-release-may-2023.html
Hoary Bat, Eastern Red Bat, and Silver-haired Bat now Endangered in Canada Read More »
