Ela Carpenter

Graduate Student, School of Natural Resources

As more and more people live in cities, it has become necessary to investigate the wildlife that exists in this unique landscape. With this knowledge, scientists can determine how wildlife’s presence there impacts city residents, and vice versa.

One understudied group of urban wildlife is bats. Despite their reputation as rabid, scary creatures, bats act as nature’s pest control, pollinators, and gardeners. While they face many threats, an important piece of their conservation puzzle is missing – how do they fare in cities?

For my dissertation research, I’ve been recording bat’s echolocation calls in Baltimore greenspaces. I hope to determine what features make these patches of nature useful to bats.

Twitter: @cherokeesita

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