OCR Text |
Show Page 8 The Ogden Valley News Volume XXX Issue X August 1, 2023 Tips toMostHelp You Prevent Conflicts with Bats Utahns probably associate time of year. However, you can take action to bats with fall and the Halloween season, but you shouldn’t be surprised if you find one in or around your home during the summer months. Utahns may see more bats this time of year because the baby bats (called pups) are learning to fly and leaving their roosts for the first time. Here’s what you should know about bats in Utah and what to do if you encounter them. Utah is home to 18 confirmed bat species, but there may be more. The greatest diversity of bat species in the state is in southern Utah. Bats are the only mammals capable of true flight. They are found throughout the state and can be abundant wherever they can find food, shelter, and water. Utah’s bats feed almost exclusively on insects. Bats rely on standing water for both drinking and as a source of insects. Female bats have increased water needs when they are producing milk for their young. When insects aren’t available during the winter months, many of Utah’s bats either migrate or hibernate (although some species do a combination of both, and others stay active year-round). Sometimes, they hibernate in caves and mines, and recent research in western states has shown that many bat species also hibernate in the crevices of cliffs. Bats in Utah do not usually hibernate in large groups like they do in many eastern U.S. states. They typically hibernate either in small groups or by themselves. Five Utah bat species migrate each year. They fly south from late August through October and then return in April and May. “Encounters with bats seem to spike in September as the migratory species, especially the Mexican free-tailed bat, move around the state,” DWR Mammal Conservation Coordinator Kimberly Hersey said. “However, there are a few simple things that homeowners can do to prevent conflicts during these times of year when bats are the most active.” What to Do If Bats Are Roosting in Your Attic - Groups of bats in homes are often maternity colonies of female bats and their babies. The females typically come out of hibernation and take up residence in a structure to give birth, usually in May or June. They then have their babies and begin to increase their activity to support lactation—this is typically when people begin to notice the bats. The young also start becoming more active and learn to fly then. “This timeframe is the hardest time of year for dealing with bat nuisance issues,” Hersey said. “Since the young can’t fly yet and are reliant on their mother’s milk, preventing the mothers from returning to their roosting spot will kill the babies. Because bats are a protected wildlife species, it’s illegal to kill them. I’ve also seen where poorly timed removals can lead to bats in attics suddenly finding their way inside someone’s home because the mothers are trying to reach their young. So, unless there is a human health and safety issue where bats are coming into close contact with people, we do not permit bat colony removal during this prevent them from getting into the living areas of your home. Although it may be inconvenient, you should wait until the young can fly, and then you can safely, humanely, and permanently address the problem.” If you suspect there is a colony of bats in your attic, you will need to contact a local, permitted wildlife nuisance control company for help. The DWR will coordinate with that company to authorize the removal at specific times of the year that won’t harm the pups. What to Do If You Discover Bats Inside Your House - Because bats can be carriers of rabies—a deadly virus that can be transmitted to people—you should never handle a bat with your bare hands. If you do have physical contact with a bat, contact your local health department for guidance. If you find a bat inside the living area of your home, open a door or window, turn off the lights inside your house and turn on a porch light outside. Leave the room and allow the bat to leave on its own. If the bat does not make its way outside on its own, you can carefully remove it. Here are tips for removing bats from your home: • Wearing heavy leather gloves, place a small box or can over the bat. • To create a lid, slide a piece of cardboard between the can and the surface where the bat was located (usually a wall or curtain), enclosing the bat inside the container. • Then, take the bat outside and release it on a tree or other high object. Bats will also occasionally use porches or overhangs as a night roost, where they can rest, digest their food, and excrete waste between meals. If bats are regularly using a porch, try hanging streamers, balloons, or other objects (like old CDs) that will move with a breeze. This seems to discourage bats from staying in the area. Tips to Prevent Bats from Roosting in Your Attic • Cool your attic with fans to make it uncomfortable for bats to take up residence. • Inspect the outside of the building for openings and gaps in siding, chimneys, and roof lines. • Seal cracks and holes with caulking, hardware cloth, foam rubber, foam sealant, tar paper and chimney caps. Do not do this, however, when bats have pups from May through August. Fall is the best time to seal these openings, especially when bats are vacating their roosts. • After August, when the young can 昀氀y, you can also place bird netting over an exterior opening. Staple it down at the top and the sides, leaving the base open. Bats will be able to drop down the netting to leave but cannot reenter the roost. Leave the netting in place for four to 昀椀ve days or until all the bats have left, and then seal the holes. For more tips and safety information regarding bats, visit the Wild Aware Utah website. CANALS cont. from page 1 solely at canal leakages have found that leakages are a critical resource in farming communities, supporting wetlands, meadows, and the habitat that depend on these wet areas. In one study, “ninetytwo percent of wetlands were visually connected to the irrigation infrastructure. Wetland water tables varied with adjacent canal 昀氀ow, and isotopic data indicated that wetlands within the study area were recharged solely by canal leakage…. Though land conversion and water diversions have led to dramatic reductions in historic wetland area in some places, it is clear from our study that current agricultural landscapes create wetlands that rely on irrigation water.” In other words, while residential and commercial development has led to wetland losses, the role of irrigation water has helped to maintain and sustain wetlands. In summary Replacing open canals with a piped system can cause disruptions, such as reducing the amount of irrigation water that previously recharged aquifers or returned water to springs and other seepage areas late in the summer. According to Gaye Browning, part owner of the Browning Ranch in Eden, seepage water from the canal does feed at least one spring that the ranch’s cattle rely on. • Open canals also contribute to general humidity levels of this closed mountain valley. As urbanization continues to further dry out the already mostly arid regions of the West, closing all open waterways furthers this negative impact, contributing to dryer habitats, increasing the likelihood and destructiveness of 昀椀res when they do occur. The increase in the amount and severity of wild昀椀res in California is a prime example of this. Proposed Tax Increase to Also Fund the Removal of Green Space According to Weber Basin’s finance manager Calysta Bravo, the proposed increased tax revenue will also be used to reduce green space by financing Weber Basin-funded incentive programs like “Flip Your Strip” and “Landscape Lawn Exchange” programs to encourage property owners to get rid of turf-covered green space. Weber Basin states on their website (weberbasin.gov/Downloads/Flip%20Your%20 Strip%20Overview%202021.pdfFlip Your Strip) that the program is intended to remove turf from park strips and create attractive, lowwater alternatives. Weber Basin will rebate $1.25 per square foot to homeowners who convert the lawn landscaping in their park strip to a more water-efficient area.” Science shows that removing green space actually increases drought risks and contributes to higher temperatures overall. As green space is replaced with roofs, concrete, blacktop, and non-green landscape materials such as rock, higher temperatures result. Katherine Mortimer, the founder and principal of Pax Consulting, which assists clients develop and implement effective climate change action, noted, at a 2022 national convention in San Diego where she gave a presentation titled “Time to Rethink Water,” that through the process of urbanization and encouraging water users to use less water, the land begins to loose water content, reducing the amount of moisture in the soil. “Cities emit heat, which further hampers clouds, and the moisture they carry, from coming on to land— until the pressure eventually builds to a point where the clouds can overcome this resistance, resulting in heavier storms when it does rain. “Too, dryer ground doesn’t allow water to infiltrate so well; thus, the soil doesn’t get as moist, preventing the groundwater from recharging as much, further reducing the amount of water availability in the soils. “Now climate change is adding more heat to the system, increasing the amount of water that is evaporated, triggering even larger and more dramatic rain events. You might think that the greater amount of rain would mean more water available for humans but just the opposite is happening. The problem is, as soil moisture is reduced, it makes it more and more difficult for water to infiltrate deep into the soils—much like how a dry sponge doesn’t absorb water as easily as a damp sponge. “Lower soil moisture stresses out trees and other vegetation, making natural areas more prone to fire and, when on fire, to higher temperatures and even more destruction. After the fires, flood risk increases as the exposed soil becomes even dryer. “Reduced groundwater recharge makes it harder to get through periods of drought since we rely on stored groundwater, particularly during these events, just as climate change is causing longer and more severe droughts. “In arid climates, the repercussions of limited water resources have been felt more keenly, incentivizing development of water conservation strategies to make the available water go farther. But as climate change exacerbates the drying of the land with higher temperatures, we are seeing bigger storms, more severe wildfires, and longer and more severe droughts. “Unfortunately, we can’t conserve our way to a more resilient water system. We need a new way of thinking about water, one that works with the water cycle, improves water infiltration, and increases soil moisture so the soil, once again, becomes more characteristic of a sponge. This will slow down runoff, so the water has more time to infiltrate and increase groundwater recharge, helping to build surplus to make it through drought cycles.” The use of turf and implementation of other green space is an effective means of conserving the moisture content of soils. While it may seem counterintuitive, green space actually works to lower the length and severity of droughts and ward off rising temperatures and hotter summers. |