Third Annual Summer Mist Net Event

The Third Annual MS Bat Working Group (MBWG) Summer Mist Net Event was held in Tishomingo County on 6/20/06 ­ 6/22/06. The meeting was hosted by J.P. Coleman State Park and sponsored by:

  • Weyerhaeuser Co.
  • University of Southern MS
  • The Nature Conservancy
  • The MS Wildlife Federation
  • Bowhead Information Technology Service.

The event was well-attended by 32 MBWG members from 3 southeastern states representing the following organizations/schools:

  • Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP)
  • MS Department of Environmental Quality
  • MS Museum of Natural Science (MMNS)
  • US Fish and Wildlife Service
  • US Forest Service (USFS)
  • US Army Engineer Research and Development Center (USAERDC)
  • National Audubon Society
  • University of Southern Mississippi (USM)
  • Mississippi State University (MSU)
  • Clemson University
  • Weyerhaeuser Company
  • Oikos Enterprises LLC
  • A&M Wildlife Removal
  • The Critter Catcher

The following presentations regarding bat research and background information were given over dinner on 6/20 and 6/21:

"The Benefits of Mist Net Events/MS Bats", Darren Miller, Weyerhaeuser, Co.,
"Use of Caves in MS by Bats", Alison Sherman, MMNS and Austin Trousdale, USM,
"Catching the Wind ­ The Collision of Bats and Renewable Energy", Ruth Pullen, and
"Survey and Capture Techniques for Rafinesque¹s Big-eared Bat and Southeastern Myotis" , Candy Stevenson, MSU.

Mist net surveys were conducted on 2 consecutive nights resulting in 28 bat captures representing 4 species. Ten sites were surveyed (located on 2 state parks, 3 wildlife management areas, and the Natchez Trace Parkway) with 6 sites yielding bat captures. Among the captures were the Red bat (19 captures), Evening bat (1), Eastern pipistrelle (7), and Hoary bat (1). The Hoary bat capture (a species of special concern) represents the first record for this species in Tishomingo County (captured by Trousdale et. al.) and 1 of only a handful of records for this species in the state.

During the day on 6/21/06 two local caves and 1 abandoned chalk mine were visited by participants. At Cave Springs off the Natchez Trace, Jarrod Fogarty, MSU, gave a talk to the group regarding the biology and ecology of rare salamanders found in the area. Several cave salamanders were observed in this cave on our visit. Poole¹s Cave and Tripoli Chalk Mine were also visited. Tripoli Chalk Mine is a historic roost site for Indiana and Gray bats. Several Eastern pipistrelles were observed on our visit.

The media was invited to the event to aid in the dissemination of information regarding the importance of bat conservation. An article regarding this event, written by Jebb Johnston, was published in the Daily Corinthian News on 6/20/06. Also a story covering the event aired on WTVA in Tupelo on 6/21/06.

I thoroughly enjoyed this event and want to thank everyone who participated. It was truly a pleasure to spend time with all of the volunteers. I feel that the primary objectives of this event (i.e. collection of bat species diversity data, educational/outreach opportunity, opportunity to make/enhance professional contacts) were met in abundance.

I want to extend a huge thank you to the following organizations and people for making this such a productive, educational, and fun event: Bill Pope, MDWFP, for providing free lodging to participants, the staff at J.P. Coleman and Tishomingo State Park for all of their help and hospitality, Darren Miller, Weyerhaeuser Co. for providing dinner on 6/20/06, Dr. Moore, Dr. Gandy, and Austin Trousdale, USM, for providing lunch, field snacks/drinks, and dinner on 6/21/06, Robbie Fischer, The Nature Conservancy, Cathy Shropshire, The MS Wildlife Federation, and Don Sloan and Monica Wolters, Bowhead Information Technology Service, for providing T-shirts, group photos, and thank you gifts to team leaders.

I¹d also like to thank Monica Wolters, USAERDC, Stephanie Steele, USFS, and Kristin Lamberson, National Audubon Society for all of their help in making this a smooth running event. A sincere thank you as well to all presenters, team leaders, and event participants.

Alison Sherman
MBWG Vice-Chair