by Anya Ambarish
Grade 7 - Stone Hill Middle School (Sterling, VA, United States)
Once a common species of bat, the Greater Long-Nosed is vital to our planet. Also known as the Mexican Long-Nosed bat, their numbers have been astronomically dropping over the years. They are now listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List, due to a variety of factors. Some of these include White Nose Syndrome, lack of roost sites, habitat loss, and decline in agave population.
The Greater-Long Nosed bat is a nectarivore. Its main diet is the nectar of agave and other night-blooming plants. The bat’s long tongue helps it collect nectar from the deepest parts of the plant. These bats live in colonies, with very irregular migration patterns. Their range of migration extends from Southern United States to Mexico.
Greater Long-nosed bats play a unique role in supporting their ecosystem. While they feed on the nectar and pollen of plants, they cross-pollinate. This cross pollination is vital for the survival of many plants, such as agave and cacti. The agave plants and these bats have a symbiotic relationship. The bat pollinates the agave, while the agave gives the bat nectar. By supporting these plants, the bats also inadvertently help bees, field mice, and a variety of birds, mainly finches, sparrows, and hummingbirds.
In Mexico, agave fibers are harvested from the leaves and exported. Agave is also used to make tequila, syrup and hair care products. In addition, agave is a large source of revenue for the country. If this bat goes extinct, Mexico’s economy would be devastated, as well as the agave population. In addition, bat feces, or “guano”, is considered the best natural fertilizer in the world. Without it, crops in many different places will suffer.
The course of action to protect this species of bat is a two-step process. First, track migration patterns and second, locate habitats, and feeding grounds. All steps, including research and prototype construction, will be funded collaboratively by the United States and Mexican governments. All work will be overseen by Bat Conservation International (BCI), which has already done great work for many species of bats all around the world.
The first step, tracking, is the most vital. Previous attempts at tracking have been unsuccessful, since this bat does not migrate in a predictable pattern and erratically crosses the border between Mexico and the United States. A tracker that is practical and suitable for bat’s body structure needs to be built. The general rule is that the tracker should weigh less than 5 percent of the animal’s body weight, so it does not compromise their health.
One possible solution is a miniaturized archival GPS tracking tag that weighs less than one gram. A similar tag was used by Smithsonian on an experiment with Ovenbirds, which are even lighter than Greater Long-Nosed bats. The tag can be programmed to collect information on migratory routes, flight patterns and timing. The tag’s only limitation is that the bats need to be recaptured to collect tracking data. But since most Greater Long-Nosed share a few known breeding sites, it will be easier to recover the majority of the bats carrying the tag.
The Greater Long-Nosed bat has a stubby head and a long back, which allows room for mounting a sturdier version of the backpack on. Given their upside down roosting position and small size, the backpack need to be mounted to the upper back of the bat. The backpack should neither move drastically from its original position nor interfere with the bat’s wing movements. The prototype for the bag should be created by Smithsonian, along with engineers who specialize in micro tagging animals. All of this will be done in collaboration with BCI. If this chip is put in a test sample of 500-1000 bats, an average flight path of the bats during migration can be calculated. This flight path can be used to identify bat behavioral patterns, and places visited by these bats.
The second step is to locate feeding grounds and breeding sites. Currently, there are only a few known breeding sites. And only some of these sites are protected. NASA has created a topographic map covering 99 percent of the globe in a giant grid of measurements. This was done by analyzing 1.3 million images collected by a Japanese instrument aboard a spacecraft. Information from this map can be used to find new caves and feeding sites. These areas can then be recorded using high definition cameras or infrared cameras attached to drones. The data from the high definition cameras can be used to identify undiscovered agave population and to map existing fields. By cross-referencing the mapped fields with the flight path data, we can find the most traveled fields and begin targeted conservation efforts.
To identify roosting sites, infrared cameras can be mounted onto the drones. These cameras can use thermal imaging to identify hot air coming out from the ground. Caves expunge hot air on a regular basis, which will allow the infrared camera to pinpoint cave locations with astounding accuracy. This search can identify potential breeding grounds that meet the requirements of this species.
Prototyping of the drone will be handled by National Geographic, who have experience in making drones. These drones will require a much longer battery life than the ones currently available. Another challenge would be to secure the propellers of the drones, which are very vulnerable. A possible solution is to use a micro lattice propeller cover. National Geographic will also be responsible for designing the infrared cameras, and mounting them onto the drone. Researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology will be enlisted for the programming of drones and analysis of collected data.
Research into local drone flying rules and coordination with local governments for obtaining necessary permits will be coordinated by BCI. A successful collaboration between the various institutions, BCI, as well as national and local governments is the only way for this project to succeed. This program is promising, but it’ll only work if we put our differences aside. By saving this species, we also help a whole ecosystem that relies on it.
References
"What Is the Symbiosis between Remoras and Sharks?" Reference. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
Clarke, Rosie. "Leptonycteris Nivalis (Mexican Long-nosed Bat)." Animal Diversity Web. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
"Experts Unite to save the Mexican Long-nosed Bat." Experts Unite to save the Mexican Long-nosed Bat. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
"Leptonycteris Nivalis ." Leptonycteris Nivalis (Greater Long-nosed Bat, Mexican Long-nosed Bat). N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
"Mexican Long-nosed Bat Videos, Photos and Facts." ARKive. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
Ornes, Stephen. "Biowarfare Saves Bats from Killer Fungus." Science News for Students. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
"Mexican Long-nosed Bat Fact Sheet." Mexican Long-nosed Bat Fact Sheet. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
Zhou, Li. "The Hottest New Accessory for Songbirds: Tiny GPS-Enabled Backpacks." Smithsonian.com. Smithsonian Institution, n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
"Tracking Bats Electronically." Tracking Bats Electronically | The Nature Conservancy. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
"NASA Satellite Maps 99% of Earth’s Topography." Wired. Conde Nast, n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017
"BATS Magazine Article: Long-Nosed Bats and Agaves: The Tequila Connection."BATS Magazine Article: Long-Nosed Bats and Agaves: The Tequila Connection. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
Nature.com. Macmillan Publishers, n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
"BATS Magazine Article: Watching the Dark." BATS Magazine Article: Watching the Dark. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2017.
Richard A. Holland, Martin Wikelski; Studying the Migratory Behavior of Individual Bats: Current Techniques and Future Directions. J Mammal 2009; 90 (6): 1324-1329. doi: 10.1644/09-MAMM-S-086R2.1
Hallworth, M. T. and Marra, P. P. Miniaturized GPS Tags Identify Non-breeding Territories of a Small Breeding Migratory Songbird. Sci. Rep. 5, 11069; doi: 10.1038/srep11069 (2015).