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Northern long-eared bat listed as threatened

Accompanying regulations ease some concerns of forest managers; environmental lawsuit already filed

Marshall Helmberger
Posted 4/16/15

REGIONAL—The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has listed the northern long-eared bat as a threatened species, although the impact of the decision is likely to be less than originally feared by many …

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Northern long-eared bat listed as threatened

Accompanying regulations ease some concerns of forest managers; environmental lawsuit already filed

Posted

REGIONAL—The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has listed the northern long-eared bat as a threatened species, although the impact of the decision is likely to be less than originally feared by many in northern Minnesota’s timber industry.

The federal agency announced April 1 that it was adopting an interim listing of the bat under the Endangered Species Act, due primarily to the threat posed by white-nose syndrome, a fungal disease that has devastated many bat populations in the eastern two-thirds of the U.S.

At the same time, the FWS issued an interim special rule, known as a 4(d) rule, that eliminates some regulatory requirements for landowners, land managers, government agencies and others in the range of the northern long-eared bat. “These special regulations are aimed at minimizing the impacts to loggers or forest managers when we can,” said Georgia Parham, a FWS spokesperson. “They exempt many forest management activities within the whitenose buffer zone,” said Parham. The buffer zone includes most of the eastern half of the U.S., including all but the westernmost counties in Minnesota.

In general, the 4(d) rule also exempts maintenance and limited expansion of transportation and utility rights-of-way as well as other limited tree removal projects, provided those activities protect known maternity roosts and hibernacula. The new rule does not prevent homeowners from removing bats from houses, garages, shed, or barns.

While the new 4(d) rule allows for most forest management activities to continue, it does require additional effort between June 1 and July 31 to identify and avoid maternity sites if forest clearing is undertaken. The regulations within the 4(d) represent a change from an earlier proposal, which had called for limiting timber harvesting beginning April 1 through Nov. 1. That initial proposal had raised serious concerns for the state’s timber industry, which feared such restrictions could severely harm the ability of loggers to operate. “It would have all but put us out of business,” said Wayne Brandt, with the Minnesota Timber Producers and Minnesota Forest Industries. According to Brandt, the new interim rule is more manageable for loggers than the previous proposal. “And the threatened status is much better than an endangered listing,” Brandt added. Still, Brandt said his organization is concerned that FWS officials may not be familiar enough with conditions in the woods to fully understand the impact of their regulations. He notes that forest management practices have changed a lot in Minnesota in recent decades, and those changes could help address some of the concerns about the bat.

FWS officials say the change in the 4(d) rule was meant to address many of the concerns raised by forest managers and others.

Tower DNR Area Forester Dana Frame said the proposed rule addresses many of the concerns voiced by the DNR in comments the agency submitted late last year. “This is the preferred ruling,” he said. “It’s the one the DNR recommended.”

The listing becomes effective on May 4, 2015, 30 days after publication of the final listing determination in the Federal Register. The public is invited to comment on this interim rule as the Service considers whether modifications or exemptions for additional categories of activities should be included in a final 4(d) rule that will be finalized by the end of the calendar year. The Service is accepting public comments on the proposed rule until July 1, 2015, and may make revisions based on additional information it receives.

The new rule has already met with opposition. The Center for Biological Diversity, which has pushed the FWS to list the northern long-eared bat, called the agency’s decision a significant step backward for bat conservation. “We’re definitely going to fight this highly political decision,” said Mollie Matteson, a senior scientist with the center. Indeed, the center filed suit against the proposal on April 2, the day after it was announced by the FWS.

Bat population

at risk

The northern long-eared bat is primarily a forest bat that frequently uses old trees as roost sites as well as maternity sites. The bats look for cracks and crevices in trees, or loose-fitting bark that provides them with protection. That makes them more susceptible than other bats to logging or other forest clearing. While the species is still relatively common in Minnesota, the species has experienced population collapses in parts of the eastern U.S. where whitenose syndrome has become established.

Impact of disease is among the factors analyzed by the Service under the Endangered Species Act when a species is considered for listing.

The Service, states, federal agencies, tribes, conservation organizations and scientific institutions are working together on a national response team to address white-nose syndrome through disease monitoring and management, conservation and outreach. The Service has granted more than $20 million to institutions and federal and state agencies for research and response.

Some human activities also impact these species, particularly close to their hibernation sites, creating heightened challenges for bat populations already weakened by disease and underscoring the need to protect important habitat while research continues to develop a cure for white-nose syndrome.    

White-nose syndrome has not yet been detected throughout the entire range of the northern long-eared bat, and will not likely affect the entire range for some years. The species appears stable in areas not yet affected by disease, mainly in the western part of its range. It also still persists in some areas impacted by white-nose syndrome, creating some uncertainty as to the timing of the extinction risk posed by the disease.