Project Objectives
The project objectives would be to develop a matrix of disturbance features (sound frequencies and volumes, canopy width, etc.) and an assessment of a barrier effect that would affect foraging and roosting behavior of Northern Long-Eared Bat colonies and other potential listed species. There would be a screening tool and GIS model that would show zones of influence around highways that have noise and disturbance levels that would result in unlikely bat utilization in adjacent habitats. The screening tool could be GIS-linked. It would like with other geocoded information, and databases, and satellite imagery, that would be updated by future researchers if need be as more information is collected.
Technical Committee Members
- Chairperson Richard Bostwick, Maine Department of Transportation
- Amanda Saul, Connecticut Department of Transportation
- Glenn Gingras, Vermont Agency of Transportation
- Rebecca Martin, New Hampshire Bureau of Environment
- Timothy Dexter, Massachusetts Department of Transportation
Implementation Activities
MassDOT will use the project’s results to continue coordination with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, FHWA, and MassWildlife on developing appropriate methods to protect rare bats through our transportation activities. Two states feel further data collection and research would be helpful in using the models developed in this project.