Protecting fuzzy-bodied, big-eared bats is the top priority for Community Bat Programs of B.C., who just received $77,237 from the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation (HCTF) and the Forest Enhancement Society of B.C. (FESBC).
The money will specifically be going to their “Got Bats?” program, which is a province-wide initiative focusing on increasing the number of and protecting bat roosting sites.
And now, with this funding, they can continue to protect, research and teach about bats.
“Our goal is to promote conservation of bats on private land through education and outreach, landowner contact, and promoting citizen science involvement in disease surveillance and the B.C. Annual Bat Count,” said Mandy Kellner, the program’s provincial coordinator, in a news release by the HCTF and FESBC.
Earlier this year, Community Bat Programs of B.C. declared the City of Delta “bat-friendly”, marking us the fourth certified community in all of the province dedicated to protecting, learning and teaching about bats.
The grant from the HCTF is part of $9.3 million that they awarded to 175 different conservation projects throughout B.C. for the 2021/2022 grant season, marking the foundation’s largest annual investment record.
Within Delta, the HCTF is also providing $30,000 funding to Delta Farmland & Wildlife Trust’s project concerning the Fraser River Estuary’s bird habitats.
“For 40 years, the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation (HCTF) has helped fund conservation groups, government, Indigenous Nations and local communities to implement projects that protect B.C.’s wildlife, freshwater fish and the habitats they need to survive and thrive,” reads the press release.
For more information on Community Bat Programs of B.C.’s Got Bats? project, check out their website at www.bcbats.ca/got-bats/.
