{"id":35537,"date":"2014-03-31T11:18:01","date_gmt":"2014-03-31T16:18:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/texas\/?p=35537"},"modified":"2014-03-31T16:22:47","modified_gmt":"2014-03-31T21:22:47","slug":"how-researchers-are-recording-the-sound-of-a-massive-bat-die-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/texas\/2014\/03\/31\/how-researchers-are-recording-the-sound-of-a-massive-bat-die-off\/","title":{"rendered":"How Researchers Are Recording the Sound of a Massive Bat Die-Off"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"USFWS<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo Courtesy of USFWS\/Ann Froschauer<\/p>\n

This species of Little Brown Bat was once common in the Northeast, but has been devastated by white-nose syndrome.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

If you’ve ever tried to evict an unwelcome bat from your home, you know it can be tricky. If you haven’t, imagine trying to coax an agile mouse into a laundry basket. Now imagine that mouse has wings.\u00a0Now imagine it has wings and<\/em> sonar.<\/p>\n

Chris Corben, a bat expert, doesn’t like the “mice with wings” analogy. He says bats are more like elephants (they have very low birth rates, he explains). But he agrees that they are difficult to catch, and it’s because of that “sonar.”<\/p>\n

“You can’t just put a trap up in a field and expect to get anything,” says Corben. “Because of the bats’ echolocation system<\/a>, they’re remarkably good at avoiding the traps.”<\/p>\n