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GROUP DETAILS
Created: Jun 01, 2008
Updated: Nov 21, 2009
Membership: Open
Semi-Private
Topic: Status of Sumatran Bats?
Posts (1 - 5 of 5)
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Hi Janine, Scott,
So, Janine alerted me to your request and I did some googling to find three potential leads to help you out.
1. This guy blogs about bat. Try digging around his blog to get a contact email. Or you can drop a comment in one of his two bat articles:
World Without Bats (written in Indonesian) http://noonathome.wordpress.com/2008/01/14/dunia-tanpa-kelelawar%E2%80%A6/
Bats be ready (also in Indonesian) http://noonathome.wordpress.com/2008/07/28/para-kampret-bersiaplah/
Here's the About section (in English): http://noonathome.wordpress.com/about/
2. This guy is researching guano-based fertilizer
Muhamad Fatah Wiyatna
His paper (in Indonesian) --> http://tumoutou.net/702_05123/m_fatah.htm
3. This guy is dubbed Indonesia's "bat expert" by a national newspaper
Agustinus Suyanto Email: asujan2002@yahoo.com
Good credentials --> His CV The newspaper article (in Indonesian) --> http://www2.kompas.com/kompas-cetak/0311/13/naper/686757.htm
Try using google translate to translate Indonesian --> English translate.google.com
Let us know how it goes Scott. Hope you find some good stuff.
In (bat) solidarity :) Bowo Jakarta, Indonesia |
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I asked someone at Bat Conservation International Scott's question. Below is her reply. I also invited her and others at BCI to join WiserEarth and our bat group. Thank you, Bowo for your links! I also asked Bowo this question because he's Indonesian and well conntected as Chief Editor on WiserEarth.
--- Answer about safely collecting bat guano from Barbara French at BCI --
Bat guano can be safely
harvested under some conditions. It should not be collected at dusk when the
bats are flying out of the cave to feed, nor at dawn when the bats are returning. It is best to collect the guano if there is a season when the
bats move elsewhere. Then it can be collected while the bats are gone. But if
the bats use the same caves year round, then the guano should only be harvested
in places where the bats are the furthest above the cave floor.
Lights should at a minimum and not shine directly on the bats (and don't shine lights
into the cave entrance when the bats exit at night or return in the
morning). Don't use lighting of any kind that produces smoke. Also, guano
should not be harvested when females are about to give birth or when babies
(pups) are born and being raised. It can be harvested after the young are able
to fly and feed on their own.
Taking these simple precautions can help protect
the bats and keep guano harvesting sustainable.
---
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Thank you very much Janine and Bowo for your help. I've been down with a cold and only today did I feel up to researching and reponding....
At Janine's suggestion, I called Bat Conservation International and spoke with Dave Waldien, codirector of programs. Bat Conservation International owns Bracken Cave, where bat guano is mined during winter months while the Tadaria brasiliensis bats are migrating. When I asked about the prospect of sustainably mining cave bat guano, he reported that there are resource protection laws as well as some groups practicing "bat friendly" techniques, but he knows in many areas it falls on the individual's sense of reponsibility. He warned the standard of living in many remote Southeast Asian villages is at subsistence level putting sustainable practices at secondary priority (if that). I asked him if there is a bat/cave habitat visiting protocol but he says BCI has not established one yet. He gave the following general tips on approaching bat caves: 1. For non-migratory, tropical species, mining is best done at night. 2. For migratory species, mining is best done while bats are away on migration. 3. Reduce noise 4. Reduce illumination 5. Avoid use of torches or any mechanical equipment that pollutes.
I followed up on Bowo's provided links and learned a few things about Indonesian Bats. By the way, the Google translator is a very coool device. The translated M.F. Wiyatna paper gave a thorough primer on Indonesian bats and their economic importance. The author indicates a negative forecast for bats and bat habitat. Not only are bat caves suffering from guano mining, but also limestone is mined for road building material, and caves are suffering from visitor disturbances.
I think I have enough evidence to say Sumatran bats are at risk and that if mining for guano is to occur, then an enforceable protocol is needed. Sustainable Bat Guano mining may not be achievable unless the laborers themselves are somehow empowered or given incentive to protect their resource. |
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Scott,
Thanks for being so conscientious in considering if guano mining in Sumatra would be ethical. I'm glad that Bowo, BCI staff, and I could answer your question.
Rest up and be healthy!
Best bat wishes,
Bat Janine |
Dear Scott -
Thanks for joining the WiserEarth bats group! We're glad to have you and thanks for your excellent question about bats in Sumatra which I've reposted below.
If you haven't already, call Bat Conservation International to connect with those who would know about the status of bats in Sumatra. Their site is an excellent reference. Info on other organizations, events, resources, and people interested in bats in Indonesia or Japan can be found doing an advanced search on WiserEarth for area of focus=bats.
I've encouraged folks to update their organizational links and I hope you'll update any information about organizations with which you are active.
Warm wishes,
Janine
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sshimatsu sent the following message on WiserEarth to members of the Bats group:
Subject - Status of Sumatran Bats?
Dear Bat Enthusiast,
My name is Scott Shimatsu and I would like to know more about the status of bats and bat habitats in Sumatra.
I am a Landscape Designer working in Los Angeles, California where I draw plans for residential, commercial and public landscapes. About a year ago, I was asked to lend support toward the promotion and marketing of bat guano as a soil amendment/fertilizer for sale to Southern California area soil suppliers. I feel obligated to help out my family relation (the one who originally approached me), but I knew it might conflict with my belief in protecting sensitive habitats.
The source of the guano is presumably from insectivorous, echo-locating bats called "princess bats" living in various caves on the islands of Sumatra, Indonesia. I understand the bat guano is "hand collected" by local workers, carried back to villages to be sun dried. I think the raw dried guano is then shipped to Japan where it is "heat processed" and mixed with other fillers (volcanic material, peat moss), whereupon it is packaged and distributed for sale to local Japanese garden supply stores. The Japanese processed guano comes in powder form and appears to be very effective as a soil supplement for plants. I've been checking around and there is significant interest in California for bat guano based fertilizer. Some have indicated a need for as much a 10 tons of product in a single shipment.
From the conservation website SEABCRU, I discovered bats are threatened and very sensitive to disturbances, but I wondered if guano harvesting could be sustainably harvested, e.g. collection limits, timing of, supervision, etc. I fear that the collection of guano will go on whether or not I am involved in the venture. The Japanese producer appears to be willing to listen to my concerns about protecting the bat habitat (sustainability is in their best interest after all). I would really appreciate your input (or referral to someone who can provide more information about the current state of Sumatran bats.
Sincerely,
Scott Shimatsu
Landscape Designer