Thanks to all of our presenters and participants in the 2023 Annual Meeting of the Mississippi Bat Working Group. Twenty-eight attendees represented a variety of state and federal government agencies, non-profit organizations, private wildlife consultants, and master naturalists from across the state.
2023 Annual Meeting
Invited presentations included:
The Mississippi bats and bridges initiative – Alison McCartney, US Fish and Wildlife Service
Designing robust monitoring strategies for bats in Mississippi – Kristine Evans, Mississippi State University
State updates on 1) White-nose syndrome surveillance and 2) Inter- and intra-culvert movements of tricolored bats – Katelin Cross, MS Dept. of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks
National Wildlife control Operators Association – bat exclusion and eviction standards for the wildlife control operator – Jeremy Everett, Frontier Wildlife Solutions
Foraging range and diurnal roost selection of tri-colored bats along the Cumberland Plateau in Franklin County, TN – Dustin Thames, TN Wildlife Resources Agency
The response of bats and their insect prey to different coastal upland habitat management techniques – Mandy Sartain, MSU Coastal Research and Education Center
MBWG 7th Annual Culvert Blitz results – Katelin Cross, MS Dept. of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks
Summary of the 2022 Mist Net event and plans for 2023 – Becky Rosamond, US Fish and Wildlife Service / MBWG Chair
Forest certification and pellet mills in Mississippi – Dr. John Auel and Dave Godwin, MS Forestry Association
USFWS listing updates – Kelly Morris, US Fish and Wildlife Service
The following awards were presented:
Education/Outreach Award
Mandy Sartain, Mississippi State University Extension
Education/Outreach Award
Marcia Potts, MS Museum of Natural Science
Service Award
Dr. Nicole Hodges, Mississippi Museum of Natural Science
Service Award
Jack Creely, MS Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks
Research/Conservation Award
Alison McCartney, US Fish and Wildlife Service
Chester O. Martin Award
Katelin Cross, MS Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks
Business meeting topics included:
Annual secretary / treasurers report – Amber Floyd, Secretary/Treasurer MBWG
Accomplishments and awards – Chester Martin, Past-chair MBWG
Updates from the SBDN annual meeting
Formation of committees for 1) bats of MS poster project, 2) Kathy Shelton Memorial Student Travel Grants, and 3) 2023 mist net event planning.
Updating traveling displays to reflect listing changes and new records
Related: 2020 Virtual Mist Net Event
Related: Resources
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