However, our bats are susceptible to white-nose syndrome (WNS), a devastating disease that affects bat species that hibernate during the winter, and can kill entire bat populations. The disease has been found throughout the eastern United States and is now moving into the Midwest . For those of you unfamiliar with the disease, here is a link to an article about WNS and the latest map showing the spread of WNS and the currently affected areas.

What can you do to help? Help report the locations of current bat populations so we can monitor them! Please print this BATS WANTED Poster and post it at your local library, grocery store, school, church, hardware store, coffee shop, etc. The poster asks that members of the public report locations of large numbers of bats. This information is vital to our ability to determine the distribution of bat species in our state so that we can better manage the population in the face of WNS. We are running out of time to gather critical baseline data for the state of Wisconsin. If you are able to, please print and distribute more than one poster or forward this information to others who may be willing to help in this effort.

More information about the Wisconsin Bat Monitoring Program can be found at http://wiatri.net/inventory/bats

Thank you in advance for your effort. Please feel free to contact me if you have questions, and if you need printed copies of the poster. Your help is greatly appreciated!

Jennifer Schehr, 608.267.0281, Jennifer.Schehr@wisconsin.gov
Cave & Mine Specialist
Ecological Inventory & Monitoring
Bureau of Endangered Resources
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources