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NORTHERN LONG-EARED BAT INTERIM CONFERENCE and PLANNING GUIDANCE USFWS Regions 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6

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NORTHERN LONG-EARED BAT INTERIM CONFERENCE and PLANNING GUIDANCE USFWS Regions 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6 US FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE NORTHERN LONG-EARED BAT INTERIM CONFERENCE AND PLANNING GUIDANCE USFWS Regions 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6 January 6, 2014 NORTHERN LONG-EARED BAT INTERIM CONFERENCE AND PLANNING GUIDANCE On October 2, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) proposed the northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis; NLEB) for listing as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The purpose of this document is to address the immediate information needs for section 7 conferences and conservation planning for the NLEB should it be listed. Please consider the following: • The information and guidance in this document should not be considered final because the FWS is still making a listing decision for NLEB. • This document provides the FWS’ current suggestions and recommendations for NLEB- consideration in project planning. This document should not be considered mandatory, unless where stated by regulation (i.e., conference requirements). • Much of the support and documentation (e.g., citations) for this document is contained in the attached appendices. It is important to note that, due to the preliminary nature of the state of knowledge of the NLEB, the approaches and information contained within this guidance and appendices may change as we gain additional information on the NLEB and its habitat. Species Overview This section provides a brief overview of the NLEB ecology and threats. Please reference the listing proposal or the FWS website for further information. This information may be found at: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/mammals/nlba/index.html. We recommend that project proponents or their representatives coordinate with the appropriate FWS Field Office to more clearly define the range and suitable habitat for their particular state/region as some differences in state/regional suitability criteria may be warranted. It may be useful to compare the habitat and ecology of the NLEB with that of the Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis). A comparison of these two bat species can be found in Appendix A. NLEB Species Range The NLEB is found in the United States from Maine to North Carolina on the Atlantic Coast, westward to eastern Oklahoma and north through the Dakotas, extending southward to parts of southern states from Georgia to Louisiana, even reaching into eastern Montana and Wyoming. In Canada it is found from the Atlantic Coast westward to the southern Yukon Territory and eastern British Columbia. Historically, the species has been found in greater abundance in the northeast and portions of the Midwest and Southeast, and has been more rarely encountered along the western edge of the range. 1 NLEB Winter Habitat and Ecology Suitable winter habitat (hibernacula) for the NLEB includes underground caves and cave-like structures (e.g. abandoned or active mines, railroad tunnels). These hibernacula typically have large passages with significant cracks and crevices for roosting; relatively constant, cool temperatures (0-9 degrees Celsius) and with high humidity and minimal air currents. Specific areas where they hibernate have very high humidity, so much so that droplets of water are often seen on their fur. Within hibernacula, surveyors find them in small crevices or cracks, often with only the nose and ears visible. NLEBs will typically hibernate between mid-fall through mid- spring each year1. NOTE: there may be other landscape features being used by NLEB during the winter that have yet to be documented. NLEB Summer Habitat and Ecology During summer NLEBs roost singly or in colonies in cavities, underneath bark, crevices, or hollows of both live and dead trees and/or snags (typically ≥3 inches dbh). Males and non- reproductive females may also roost in cooler places, like caves and mines. This bat seems opportunistic in selecting roosts, using tree species based on presence of cavities or crevices or presence of peeling bark. NLEBs has also been occasionally found roosting in structures like barns and sheds (particularly when suitable tree roosts are unavailable). NLEB emerge at dusk to forage in upland and lowland woodlots and tree-lined corridors, feeding on insects, which they catch while in flight using echolocation. This species also feeds by gleaning insects from vegetation and water surfaces. 1 Exact dates vary by location. See Appendix D for more information. 2 Suitable summer habitat for NLEB consists of a wide variety of forested/wooded habitats where they roost, forage, and travel and may also include some adjacent and interspersed non-forested habitats such as emergent wetlands and adjacent edges of agricultural fields, old fields and pastures. This includes forests and woodlots containing potential roosts (i.e., live trees and/or snags ≥3 inches dbh that have exfoliating bark, cracks, crevices, and/or cavities), as well as linear features such as fencerows, riparian forests, and other wooded corridors. These wooded areas may be dense or loose aggregates of trees with variable amounts of canopy closure. Individual trees may be considered suitable habitat when they exhibit characteristics of suitable roost trees and are within 1000 feet of other forested/wooded habitat2. NLEB has also been observed roosting in human-made structures, such as buildings, barns, bridges, and bat houses; therefore, these structures should also be considered potential summer habitat3. NLEBs typically occupy their summer habitat from mid-May through mid-August each year4 and the species may arrive or leave some time before or after this period. NLEB maternity habitat is defined as suitable summer habitat used by juveniles and reproductive (pregnant, lactating, or post-lactating) females. NLEB home ranges5, consisting of maternity, foraging, roosting, and commuting habitat, typically occur within three miles of a documented capture record or a positive identification of NLEB from properly deployed acoustic devices, or within 1.5 miles of a known suitable roost tree (see Appendix C for more information). Suitable NLEB roost trees Suitable NLEB roosts are trees (live, dying, dead, or snag) with a diameter at breast height (DBH) of three inches or greater that exhibits any of the following characteristics: exfoliating bark, crevices, cavity, or cracks. Isolated trees are considered suitable habitat when they exhibit the characteristics of a suitable roost tree and are less than 1000 feet from the next nearest suitable roost tree within a woodlot, or wooded fencerow. NLEB Spring staging/Fall swarming Habitat and Ecology Suitable spring staging/fall swarming habitat for the NLEB consists of the variety of forested/wooded habitats where they roost, forage, and travel, which is most typically within 5 miles of a hibernaculum. This includes forested patches as well as linear features such as fencerows, riparian forests and other wooded corridors. These wooded areas may be dense or loose aggregates of trees with variable amounts of canopy closure. Isolated trees are considered suitable habitat when they exhibit the characteristics of a suitable roost tree and are less than 2 This number is based on observations of bat behavior indicating that such an isolated tree (i.e., ≥1000 feet) would be extremely unlikely to be used as a roost. This distance has also been evaluated and vetted for use for the Indiana bat. See the “Indiana bat Section 7 and Section 10 Guidance for wind Energy Projects,” question 33, found at: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/mammals/inba/WindEnergyGuidance.html 3 Trees found in highly-developed urban areas (e.g., street trees, downtown areas) are extremely unlikely to be suitable NLEB habitat. 4 Exact dates vary by location. See Appendix D for more information. 5 Note that the definition of a home range used here may differ from the use of this term in other sources (e.g., published literature). 3 1000 feet from the next nearest suitable roost tree, woodlot, or wooded fencerow. NLEBs typically occupy their spring staging/fall swarming habitat from early April to mid-May and mid- August to mid-November6, respectively. NLEB Migration As with many other bat species, NLEBs migrate between their winter hibernacula and summer habitat. The spring migration period likely runs from mid-March to mid-May, with fall migration likely between mid-August and mid-October. Overall, NLEB is not considered to be a long- distance migrant (typically 40-50 miles) although known migratory distances vary greatly between 5 and 168 miles. Potential Threats and Impacts to NLEB No other threat is as severe and immediate for the NLEB as the disease, white-nose syndrome (WNS). If this disease had not emerged, it is unlikely the northern long-eared population would be declining so dramatically. Since symptoms were first observed in New York in 2006, WNS has spread rapidly in bat populations from the Northeast to the Midwest and the Southeast. Population numbers of NLEB have declined by 99 percent in the Northeast, which along with Canada, has been considered the core of the species’ range. The degree of mortality attributed to WNS in the Midwest and Southeast is currently undetermined. Although there is uncertainty about how WNS will spread through the remaining portions of the species’ range, it is expected to spread throughout the United States. In general, the FWS believes that WNS has reduced the redundancy and resiliency of the species. Although significant NLEB population declines have only been documented due to the spread of WNS, other sources of mortality could further diminish the species’ ability to persist as it experiences ongoing dramatic declines. Specifically, declines due to WNS have significantly reduced the number and size of NLEB populations in some areas of its range. This has reduced these populations to the extent that they may be increasingly vulnerable to other stressors that they may have previously had the ability to withstand. These impacts could potentially be seen on two levels. First, individual NLEBs sickened or struggling with infection by WNS may be less able to survive other stressors.
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