Highlight
Interdisciplinary Team for Bat Conservation in Mexico
Emma Gomez with bat
Achievement/Results
National Science Foundation (NSF) funded researchers at Texas A&M University have created a novel approach to integrating the biological and social sciences to inform conservation practices. A graduate student from the Applied Biodiversity Science (ABS) Program is leading a team of faculty, graduate, and undergraduate students to promote bat conservation in northern Mexico. Emma Gomez, ABS associate, with input from Mike Petriello, ABS Trainee, has created a project that combines the strengths of undergraduate cavers and theater arts majors to assist her dissertation research on the conservation of the Mexican Long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris nivalis, Phyllostomidae).
The Mexican long-nosed bat is a migratory species distributed from central Mexico to the southwestern United States, occurring in pine-oak and deciduous forest, and desert scrub. Currently, this bat is listed as endangered in the United States and Mexico and globally by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN Red List), due to declines in populations of over 50% in the past 10 years. Mexican long-nosed bats are specialized to feed on nectar and pollen. They migrate north starting in late spring following the blooms of century plants. The pollination systems in century plants (Agave spp.) are adapted to produce higher levels of nectar at night favoring nocturnal flower visitors. Mexican long-nosed bats ensure cross-pollination in century plants enhancing the genetic diversity of these plants and eventually increasing their resilience to environmental stress. Century plants play a critical role in maintaining soil stability in arid and semi-arid ecosystems. Moreover, these plants have socio-economic value because historically they have provided food and cultural services for humans in the form of natural fibers, and traditional beverages such as tequila and mescal.
The migration of the Mexican long-nosed bat is considered an “endangered phenomenon” because of its complexity. Only maternity colonies have been found in the northern part of its range. Additional evidence from genetic analysis suggests that all reproductive females migrate north during the spring and summer months as a single, loosely formed colony. According to this evidence, the Mexican long-nosed bat is extremely vulnerable to disturbance at any of the roost and foraging sites in its northern range. The ecosystems in the northern range region have suffered high levels of degradation due to the conversion of land to agricultural use and livestock activities. Recent severe droughts strongly affected northern Mexico and southwestern US regions. The absence of rain has delayed the blooming events of the century plants. Furthermore, the drought has aggravated the presence of intense fires extending into large areas of the Mexican long-nosed bat habitat.
Emma Gomez’s project is novel in its approach to the conservation of this endangered species because she is integrating the biological science of the impact of the species on the region with community education. Gomez’s project focuses on the northern region of the bats’ range, which includes the states of Coahuila and Nuevo Leon in Mexico and Texas in the United States. She is identifying critical foraging and roosting sites to prioritize conservation actions that will help the recovery of Mexican long-nosed bat population and the maintenance of the pollination services it provides to key plants in arid ecosystems. The team is using computer modeling techniques and field assessments to evaluate the availability of foraging and roosting sites, and identify the condition and threats to these sites. The project engages members of local communities to support bat conservation rules and regulations through innovative education techniques.
She has enlisted the aid of two undergraduates with varied interests to assist her investigation and education programs. Rachel Saker, a senior wildlife and fisheries and vertebrate zoology double major, has been caving with the Aggie Speleological Society for more than a year. She assists the project by investigating how far from roosting sites the bats forage. The team nets bats at intervals of 20, 40 and 50 kilometers from the cave and marks each bat at each distance with a different colored UV powder. During the day, the team searches the cave with black lights to see how far bats have traveled based on their color markings. Citlally Jimenez, an undergraduate double majoring in wildlife and fisheries and theatre arts, implements the social aspect of the project. She raises bat conservation awareness through theatre performance in both communities and schools. She uses interactive performance techniques to engage members of the community in learning about the importance of bats to the region while dispelling negative myths associated with bats The results of this project will help to develop a conservation plan for the Mexican long-nosed bat in collaboration with local communities and state and national governments. The importance of the biological sciences to create sound conservation practices combined with the education of communities to implement conservation measures will create a holistically sound conservation project.
The novelty of Gomez’s project has been featured in the Texas A&M University paper The Battalion, The Wildlife Society Bulletin, and The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund. ABS faculty members Drs. Tom Lacher and Jane Packard mentor the project.
Address Goals
Gomez’ research advances the knowledge about Mexican long-nosed bats (Leptonycteris nivalis, Phyllostomidae), a species globally considered endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN Red List). Her approach of team building by engaging people from different disciplines to inform conservation management scientific principles and disseminating the knowledge to communities will serve as an example to other conservation projects around the world. Her work bridges the borders of the United States and Mexico fostering cooperation and the scientific literacy for the citizens of two nations. The novelty of Gomez’s project has been featured locally in The Battalion, a Texas A&M University paper, nationally in The Wildlife Society Bulletin, and internationally by The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund.
Gomez’s project focuses on the northern region of the bats’ range, which includes the states of Coahuila and Nuevo Leon in Mexico and Texas in the United States. She is identifying critical foraging and roosting sites to prioritize conservation actions that will help the recovery of Mexican long-nosed bat population and the maintenance of the pollination services it provides to key plants in arid ecosystems. The team is using computer modeling techniques and field assessments to evaluate the availability of foraging and roosting sites, and identify the condition and threats to these sites. The project engages members of local communities to support bat conservation rules and regulations through innovative education techniques.
