Bat Species Inventory at Big Thicket National Preserve 2023 - Open Format Dataset

Big Thicket National Preserve (BITH) is an ecologically distinct, biodiversity-rich area. However, rapid development surrounds the preserve, and most areas within BITH are subject to continued oil and gas production and transportation and are subject to potential visitor impacts on natural resources. Future management planning requires an understanding of where the 11 species of bats are in the park, especially the roost locations of two species of conservation concern, Rafinesque’s big-eared bat (Corynorhinus rafinesquii) and southeastern bat (Myotis austroriparius). Following the North American Bat Monitoring Program protocols, we used passive acoustic monitoring to survey for bat species presence with twelve detectors recording from May – July 2023. We also captured bats to radio-track our focal species to roost locations. We confirmed the presence of 11 bat species within BITH. We tracked two male Rafinesque’s big-eared bats and identified three roost cavities in three species of trees. These results are the beginning of a longer-term monitoring program to inform restoration and resource management within the longleaf pine savannah and forested wetlands of BITH. Continuing to build our understanding of roosting sites will allow us to determine whether roosting sites are a limiting factor for local populations and whether mitigation is needed