Minnesota’s bats need your help!
Bats are important to healthy ecosystems. They consume an enormous amount of insects, helping to keep these populations in check. Unfortunately, bats are facing many challenges throughout their range. Understanding where they live and forage in Minnesota helps us learn more about their population status and informs conservation actions.
Recording bat vocalizations (made while they are echolocating) with audio recorders is an effective method to collect data on Minnesota’s bats. Collecting this information will help us learn where bats live and forage for insects. This is especially true for migratory bat species that are solitary, high flying and otherwise difficult to study.
We need to collect this data across the state and we can’t do that without help! We are seeking volunteers to become Bat Echo Locators, to support us in this important statewide data collection effort.
This project is led by the Nongame Wildlife Community Science Program and Minnesota Biological Survey to document:
Where different species of bats are distributed throughout the state
When bats are active and hunting for food in different regions
How bat populations are changing over time
What will Bat Echo Locator volunteers do?
We need to know where different species of bats are active across the state and what their activity patterns are like. Volunteers will use audio recorders to collect bat call (vocalization) data and send the data to us for analysis.
What you will do: Volunteers will place a small ultrasonic recording device in bat habitat and leave it for 4-7 days. After the recording period is over, volunteers will return to the site, collect the recorder and upload the data to our online database or mail the data card back to us.
Where you will do it: We have specific targeted areas spread out across the state that need to be surveyed. These areas will be described in the training. Volunteers will be assigned to a survey site within one of these targeted areas that matches well with their geographic location.
Time commitment: Once a month (in June and July), the volunteer will travel to and from the same assigned location to place the recorder, then return 4-7 days later to retrieve the recorder. Additional time will be required to upload data to a computer and submit it online or to mail the data card back to the DNR.
What you will need to know (training and resources provided):
How to identify a good spot at your assigned site to place a bat recorder
How to check the recorder to make sure it is functioning and has working batteries
Ability to travel to and from your assigned location where you will place your recorder
Ability to upload data from a data card onto a computer and enter that data into an online database or, alternatively, mail the data card back to the DNR
Who Can Participate?
This program is open to anyone who can:
Learn how to place an audio recorder outside
Ensure the recorder is properly mounted on a piece of PVC pipe or similar structure (instructions provided)
Navigate outdoors safely to and from the location of the recorder
Participate at least once a month in June and July (optionally more)
Collect accurate data about where the recorder was placed, weather conditions, and time
Submit all data (online or by mail) and return equipment to the DNR at the end of the season.
This program is a great fit for:
People who are interested in audio recording technology
Anyone who is curious about bats in Minnesota
How to get involved
To volunteer with Echo Locators:
Register for an online information session. Information sessions for the 2026 season will be offered on May 13th and 14th. Sessions will be recorded for people who cannot attend. These sessions will include information about how to apply to be matched with one of our target survey areas. For those who match with a target survey area, an online training will be provided at a later date on how to register as a volunteer and how to do the project.
Please note: We may not have a survey site and acoustic recorder available for all who wish to participate. We will do our best to match those interested in participating with a targeted site convenient to their geographic location, but one may not be available. However, we encourage anyone interested in this project to attend the information session and apply. We have targeted areas located across the state, and we need to find volunteers statewide to achieve our goal to help Minnesota's bats. Volunteers who express interest this year but don't receive an assignment will be prioritized in future years. Thank you for your interest!
- What is the time commitment to be a Bat Echo Locator?
- A one-hour training is required. Time required for surveys depends on how far volunteers travel to their survey site and how long it takes to set up equipment. Equipment setup usually takes less than an hour. Detectors are set up in the survey location and left to record for 4-7 nights, twice during the summer (June and July). Additional survey time will be required to return to the site (in June and July) to retrieve the data card, and upload the data to a computer, submit data online, or, alternatively to mail the card back to the DNR.
- How does this project help bats?
- Data from these projects will help us understand how bat population distribution and behavior are changing through time in response to conservation challenges. This survey will help us establish baseline information about summer bat populations in Minnesota.
- Why do bats matter?
- Bats are an important part of Minnesota’s diverse ecosystems. They are strictly insectivores (wildlife that eat only insects), and they can consume their body weight in insects each night. They feast on mosquitoes and a host of agricultural and forest pests that damage crops and impact forest health. Bats benefit Minnesota ecosystems in many ways, yet they are facing severe threats that are reducing their populations throughout the state.
- More information about bats
- Bats of Minnesota
Bat Observation Report (if you have sick bat observations, find a bat in an odd location, or found one inside your living space).