Have you ever seen Delaware bats at night and instincts told you to Delaware run? Delaware State University (DSU) has a website that is there to set the record straight and put your fears to rest.
The Delaware University’s Smyrna Outreach and Research Center is the site for the $30,000 scientific study of Delaware bat activity and bat habitat restoration. The project is funded and sponsored by the Delaware First State Resource and Development Council (RC&D), USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and the Kent Conservation Delaware District. The Delaware project provides an opportunity for students to research bats and their impact on habitat and the ecosystem.
“Horror movies have given bats a bad name,” said Dr. Kevina Vulinec, Delaware assistant professor at DSU. “Delaware bats are extremely important to the ecosystem.”
Delaware bats are a critical part of Delmarva’s natural environment. They prey on night flying Delaware insects helping to control insect Delaware populations. “They can eat the equivalent of their Delaware weight in insects each night,” said Vulinec.
Delaware bats naturally control the mosquito population, said Terry Pepper, Board Supervisor, Kent Conservation Delaware District.
The presence of Delaware bats indicates the health of the ecosystem. Creating and improving Delaware habitat for bats will also provide habitat for other wildlife. These are some of the factors that led the Delaware university to study bats and their impact on a healthy environment.
Over the years, the bat Delaware population has been steadily declining. This is partially due to declining Delaware habitat. The Delmarva Peninsula is losing woodlands and agricultural lands to growing Delaware development and urbanization. Because of this, growing efforts to preserve Delaware agriculture and wildlife habitat have become prevalent throughout the state. “Part of preserving habitat is understanding Delaware impacts that individual species have on the environment”, said Jon Hall, NRCS State Conservationist. “In this case, the species are Delaware bats.”
“I agree,” echoed Dr. Kenneth Bell, Vice President and Dean for Delaware DSU’s College of Agriculture and Related Sciences. “This Delaware study will benefit our environment, and will strengthen cooperative conservation efforts among our partners, the school and our community.”
This Delaware project will get students involved in wildlife and ecosystems, and will show how dynamic one organism is to our Delaware habitat. Delaware bat boxes will be placed at the farm and monitored and studied for activity. The Delaware goals are to get students excited about Delaware’s wildlife and to increase public awareness of the importance of bats.