Bat Habitat Assessment
Image (c) Josh Vandermeulen
Each NRTG course includes free, lifetime admission. Enrol once – come back anytime.
Description
Bat Habitat Assessment is an introductory, applied two-day online course with student-led field and data analysis assignments. Designed for those new to bat habitat assessments, the course provides a step-by-step approach to identifying and documenting bat habitat in the field and using industry-standard acoustic monitoring techniques to evaluate habitat use by bat species. The course is grounded in current guidance, standardized survey protocols, and recognized industry best practices.
Program Outcomes
Upon successful completion, participants will be able to:
- Identify potential bat habitat by conducting both desktop reviews and field assessments to determine whether potentially suitable habitat is present at a site.
- Evaluate habitat in the field using standardized federal and provincial guidance to assess the presence of suitable habitat for key bat species in Canada.
- Develop a bat survey plan by applying recognized federal and provincial guidance to design effective field surveys to assess habitat use.
- Develop introductory skills in identifying bat species from acoustic recordings (sonogram analysis).
- Interpret acoustic survey data to assess bat activity and support informed ecological assessments and management decisions.
Prerequisites
There are no formal prerequisites. Knowledge and experience with basic field skills such as map reading, compass, and GPS is recommended, along with some familiarity with tree and shrub identification methods.
Certification
To successfully complete the bat course, participants must attend the full course and complete desktop and field exercises. If a participant has barriers to completing the field exercise, alternative options may be approved by the instructor.
Who attends?
Recent graduates, early-career field ecologists, biologists, and technicians looking for introductory level hands-on training
How do I attend?
This course is available for individual registration via our website schedule, or by contract to community groups or organizations as a private delivery. To schedule a private delivery, please contact us well in advance of your preferred start date.
What should I bring or supply?
You will need:
- Computer
- Stable internet access
- Pen and paper
Please note that each afternoon features a student-led field component. See the recommended equipment list for these sessions below. If a participant does not have the equipment, alternatives can be arranged with the instructor.
Appropriate clothing for field work, including suitable all-weather boots
- Field notebook
- Camera (phone camera is acceptable)
- Compass (phone app is acceptable)
- GPS (phone app is acceptable)
- Field guides to local trees
- Measuring tape or Diameter at Breast Height (DBH) tape
- Binoculars
- Google Earth Pro (free download)
- Smart phone or printer for reviewing air photos
Instructor Profiles
Matt Dil
Ecologist
Matt Dil is an Ecologist with over 13 years of experience working in the environmental sector and has developed a specialization in bats and other wildlife ecology. Matt has experience with a wide variety of wildlife survey protocols including agency-recommended protocols for bat maternity roost assessments, acoustic monitoring and data analysis, visual emergence surveys (treed habitats and anthropogenic structures), Breeding Bird Surveys and targeted Species at Risk (SAR) surveys (e.g., Bank Swallow, Jefferson Salamander, Western Chorus Frog). Prior to being an ecology consultant in Ontario, he gained international experience as an avian biologist in Texas, and also conducted surveys for owls, ptarmigan and other wildlife on Vancouver Island, BC.
Maggie Pugh, M.Sc
Ecologist
Maggie Pugh is an ecologist with more than two decades of experience in ecosystem assessment and ecological consulting. She has worked extensively with bats across Canada since 2008, with industry experience spanning wind energy, transportation, and development projects.
Maggie’s bat-related work began with post-construction mortality monitoring at both large-and small-scale wind energy facilities. She then moved onto conducting pre-construction surveys to characterize habitats and activity to inform turbine placement and mitigation to minimize potential impacts to local bats. As several Canadian bat species became recognized as Species at Risk, Maggie’s work shifted to applying federal and provincial guidance to evaluate habitats, assess potential project impacts, and support mitigation and habitat protection measures, including permitting and compensation plans.
Maggie brings practical field experience and a strong understanding of how habitat assessments and acoustic monitoring can be applied to support effective bat conservation and informed environmental decision-making for industry applications.