But the insect-gobbling critters are friends of farmers — and they need help from producers, says the co-ordinator of the Alberta Community Bat Program.

“In Canada, all of our bats are eating bugs — insects and spiders,” said biologist Cory Olson. “Their diets are fairly diverse, but they are only eating bugs.”

The Wildlife Conservation Society of Canada, which runs the program, says bats will eat their weight in insects each night, with moths and mosquitoes being top menu choices, but also flies, beetles and caterpillar larvae.

But they’re also under threat, Olson said in a recent presentation put on by the Prairie Conservation Action Plan.

There are nine species of bats in Alberta. The Little Brown Myotis (a.k.a. the Little Brown Bat) and the Northern Myotis are listed as endangered because these species are suffering the devastating effects of a fungus called white-nose syndrome. The status of some other species are unknown and only the Big Brown Bat and the Long Eared Myotis are not conservation concerns.

“This is a little bit alarming considering how important bats are for biodiversity,” said Olson.

White-nose syndrome, a fungus introduced to New York state about 2008, has expanded across Canada and the U.S. It causes bats to more frequently wake during hibernation, so they deplete their fat stores and starve before spring arrives.

“It’s not in Alberta or Saskatchewan… but it is coming pretty close,” said Olson, adding it has been found in Manitoba.

“There’s not a whole lot we can do to stop the spread of white-nose syndrome. What we are focusing on is building resiliency in the bat population and that is the focus of our program in Alberta and the objective of other bat conservation programs.”

Another big issue is wind turbines.

It’s estimated each one kills 11 bats per year, particularly during the fall when species such as the Silver Haired and Eastern Red Bats are migrating. Given there are more than 1,000 turbines on the Prairies, the numbers add up fast.

“Potentially over 10,000 bats per year are killed by turbines in Alberta and Saskatchewan alone,” said Olson. “This rate of fatalities is believed to be unsustainable.”

Finding a place to live isn’t getting easier, either.

“Habitat loss is not unique to bats. It is affecting lots of Prairie species,” he said.

It doesn’t help that bats, while long lived, aren’t prolific breeders and that they have a rather fussy way of drinking, skimming low over a body of water and gulping.

“They are not landing to drink, so they need access to open water, free of obstructions like duckweed. It needs to be still,” said Olson.

They also need a place to roost, whether that’s a tree, under a bridge, or in a building. Olson recommends not evacuating bats from their homes when pups are in the roost.

“Pups can’t leave without their mother,” he said. “If the mother is excluded, the pups will die and decompose in the building, creating more problems for its owners.”

The best thing to do is just wait until they leave in October or November, and then do repairs to keep them out in future.

Yards are full of potential hazards for bats. They can crawl inside chimneys or chutes and become trapped. Rain barrels and water troughs are also major threats, house cats kill an unknown number, and they can even get caught on barbed wire.

There are several guides on being bat friendly available at www.albertabats.ca, including making a yard more bat friendly, creating a bat home, or removing them from a building.

Olson is currently working on a project to investigate bats as a control of pests in agricultural environments and is looking for farmers to take a survey on their perception of bats (here’s a link to the survey).

The post They’re more creepy than cuddly — but bats need your help appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

Fortunately, there is an avenue to work with human and animal doctors, scientists and experts towards a healthy world and it is called One Health.

One Health is defined as a “collaborative, multi-sectoral and transdisciplinary approach working at the local, regional, national and global levels.” The goal is to achieve optimal health outcomes recognizing the interconnection between animals, plants and people, and the environment that they share.

This global initiative is far reaching with a particular focus on food safety, zoonotic disease and antibiotic resistance. It includes research into all aspects of the interaction of animals and people, between pests and people, and the environment that we create to expose and invite transmission. Canada has many leading experts involved in One Health.

To illustrate, I will take the example of the bat in relation to human, animal and ecological health, food safety and antimicrobial resistance.

Bats carry three known transmittable fungi, parasites and more than 60 viruses which may infect humans through direct contact, proximity to food plants, food animals or pets.

Exposure to bats and the diseases they carry increases when they are captured, reared for food or other cultural uses; when their habitat is decreased and they suddenly have contact with humans; or when their habitat is threatened and they relocate into a populated area. They may be the carrier that transmits to another animal, such as rabies from a bat to a dog, that then can transmit to a human through a bite. The solution has been to vaccinate the dog.

First and foremost, healthy bats are part of a healthy ecology and human health. They are super pollinators and seed spreaders. The fact that they can eat 1,000 mosquitoes (which can carry malaria) in an hour is amazing, but they also eat other harmful insects, ones that can destroy food crops or transmit disease. A healthy ecology needs a healthy bat.

But through genomics we know they are proven transmitters of COVID-19. Before we look at the destruction of bat populations as a solution, we must look at the interplay between humans, other animals and bats.

The smallest known mammal, around 13 per cent of bat species are a food source and are hunted as such. Bat meat is also considered as part of treatment for serious ailments such as asthma or epilepsy. They have been consumed throughout history and culturally are an accepted source of protein.

Protecting those populations who have a dependency on bat meat while ensuring the health and safety of the community is the first step. But as human behaviour changes, so does the behaviour of the bat. Through One Health, there are experts weighing in and scientists researching all aspects of this creature. This is a long list including:

• the role of the bat in the ecology;
• the economic benefit of bats;
• loss of habitat and bat behaviour;
• effects of encroachment of human and other mammal populations;
• secrets of the bat immune system (bats have an astounding immune system and seem to survive a massive viral attack which may make them very much a part of the solution);
• bats as a zoonotic host;
• effect of dense animal and human populations;
• using genomics for the rapid development of vaccines; and
• best practices and solutions when a virus crosses into other receptors such as people.

Researchers are also looking at food safety as it pertains to crops grown in bat-infested areas; food safety from the transportation; display, preparation and consumption of bat meat; and the transmission of disease from vendor to consumer.

As well, we must look at the cost of illness and the response of a population to vaccination or alternative treatment and research secondary infection such as pneumonia, which is bacterial and may be resistant to antibiotics.

It is clear that the goal of an optimal health outcome cannot be created in isolation.

If we want to prevent the emergence of disease we must understand the host as well as the environmental and social determinants: the consequence of human behaviour; and be prepared with adequate solutions or research to drive change.

To fully contain future diseases, there must be an understanding of cause (bats for food supply) and the consequence (infectious disease), as well as the entire chain of events and our susceptibility, treatment and cure.

It is important for those in agriculture to check in with their industry, their local government, academic institutions and medical associations to ensure they understand and support the importance of One Health in a systems approach.

If the pandemic has taught us one thing, it is that we are truly all in this together and we need one collaborative platform that engages every level of expertise to create or nurture systems that ensure optimal health for animals, people, plants and the environment.

The post The interconnections between species are deep and interwoven appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

Though dog meat remains a delicacy in many regions, the ministry of agriculture said in a notice published on Wednesday that dogs would no longer be considered as livestock. It uses that designation for animals that can be bred to provide food, milk, fur, fibre and medicine, or to serve the needs of sports or the military.

“As far as dogs are concerned, along with the progress of human civilization and the public concern and love for animal protection, dogs have been ‘specialized’ to become companion animals, and internationally are not considered to be livestock, and they will not be regulated as livestock in China,” it said.

The coronavirus is widely believed to have originated in horseshoe bats, and could have been passed onto humans by intermediary species on sale in the markets of the city of Wuhan, where the pathogen was first identified.

China subsequently banned the breeding, trading and consumption of wildlife, and revoked all existing licenses. It has also promised to revise legislation to make the ban permanent.

The draft guidelines published on Wednesday, which have been opened to the public for consultation, listed 18 traditional livestock species — including cattle, pigs, poultry and camels.

It also added 13 “special” species that would also be exempt from wild animal trading restrictions, including reindeer, alpaca, pheasants, ostriches and foxes.

Dog consumption has become increasingly unpopular in China, and the southern city of Shenzhen became the first to ban it last month.

However, the Humane Society International, an animal welfare group, estimated that around 10 million dogs a year are still killed in China for meat, including stolen pets. The city of Yulin in the region of Guangxi holds an annual dog meat festival in June.

“This draft proposal could signal a game-changer moment for animal protection in China,” said Wendy Higgins, a Humane Society International spokeswoman.

— Reporting for Reuters by David Stanway.

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“For some reason, bats have a negative image around them,” said Lisa Card, a conservation technician with Highway 2 Conservation, which serves Sturgeon, Athabasca, Barrhead, and Westlock counties.

“It might be because they are nocturnal and we don’t know too much about them. Rabies may have been a problem in the past, but they’re really a beneficial species and there’s nothing to be scared of.

“Their lives are worth something, so we have to find a way to coexist with them and dispel the fear and negativity around them.”

That was the message Card delivered at recent bat information workshops in Barrhead and Westlock.

Bats are the sole pollinators of about 300 species of tropical plants, and a 2011 American study estimated they save the U.S. agricultural industry $3.7 billion every year in pest control. In Alberta, bats are often hunting while wheat midge are active and one provincial species, the little brown bat, can consume as many as 6,000 mosquitoes in one night when feeding its pups.

“If you have a colony of 50 bats, think of how many mosquitoes are taken care of in a night,” said Card.

While some believe bats spread rabies, the critters are actually controlling dangerous pests.

“The last case of rabies in Alberta was in 2006,” said Card. “Since 2002, we’ve had 680 cases of West Nile virus. Bats are doing a much better job of disease control than they are spreading disease.”

Dogs are a more likely carrier of rabies, and rabid bats don’t attack people. In most cases, people who have been bitten by rabid bats were handling sick animals without wearing gloves.

“If you see a sick bat, a bat that is acting abnormally or flying around during the day, just leave it alone and don’t touch it,” she said.

Bat houses

There are nine bat species found in Alberta. The most common are the big brown bat and the little brown bat. But their populations are declining due to wind turbines, habitat loss, and a disease called white nose syndrome.

But agricultural producers can pay an important role in creating habitat for bats. A few years ago, Card studied bat activity in different landscapes in Alberta, and found bat activity was the same in naturally forested and agricultural areas.

“I was quite surprised because I thought that the natural areas would have the largest amount of feeding and calls,” she said, although larger species were found more frequently in naturally forested areas.

• More on the Alberta Farmer: What to do when the bats come home to roost

Dugouts and other open watering sources can be attractive areas to bats, since they need places to drink and feed on the mosquitoes and other insects in the area. Bats are also attracted to plants such as rosemary, thyme and evening primrose.

To create a habitat that is inviting for bats, leave dead snags in trees, because bats like to roost in the holes in them.

“If it’s not a safety hazard, just leave it up and think of it as mosquito control,” said Card.

Producers can also build bat houses and can find designs on the Internet. Houses should be placed about 15 feet off the ground, south facing, and have a clearance of about 20 feet around them so bats can swoop in and out. Bat houses need to be in a spot that is warm, easy to find and not easily disturbed. Placing houses in trees isn’t the best option because the bats can be threatened by other species like blue jays or squirrels.

“The most successful placement is generally on a pole in the middle of the yard,” said Card.

The post Misunderstood bats don’t deserve their bad rap appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

“If you know that you have bats in your house, chances are it’s because there is not a good habitat for them somewhere else,” says conservation technician Lisa Card. “Most species would rather not be there, but their habitat has been altered and for whatever reason, they can’t find suitable roosting habitat.”

Most people realize they have a bat problem when they hear them inside their house. There’s usually more than one, and likely a maternal bat colony. Bats have their pups between late May and August, and although big brown bats will hibernate in buildings, most species will vacate the premises in late August. It’s best to leave them alone during the summer.

• More on the Alberta Farmer: Misunderstood bats don’t deserve their bad rap

“This is not a good time to do bat exclusion because you will lock in the babies, and they will die and stink up your house,” said Card.

Not all bats will leave the house every night either.

The best time to do bat exclusion is in late fall, before it snows.

“If you have bats in your home in the summer, use the summer as an experiment to see where they come in and out. They will usually have more than one exit or entry into the house. Watch and see where you will need to block it in the fall.”

Most bats are very loyal to their maternal colonies and will make every effort to return to the same roost. They can squeeze into spaces that are smaller than the diameter of a pencil.

“If they think your place is great, they will make every effort to come back to your place, so you need to be very thorough in blocking every single hole that a bat can get into,” she said.

The post What to do when the bats come home to roost appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.