Environmental Information Management System

Name: Fringed Myotis

Phylum: Craniata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Chiroptera

Family: Vespertilionidae

Scientific: Myotis thysanodes

• Foraging and roosting habitats often found in interior dry forests.
• Roosts often used over long periods.
• Hibernacula and roosts are generally associated with: caves, rock crevices, mine tunnels, dead standing trees, and abandoned buildings.

• Minimize disruption of roosting / hibernating bats.
• Plan activities so that roosts / hibernation sites (occupied and unoccupied) continue to be readily used by bats.

All Activities

• Within identified habitat, plan location of oil and gas activities to avoid habitat features including hibernacula, roosts and maternal roosts. If these habitat types are encountered in areas known to be potentially occupied by Fringed Myotis (i.e., CDC polygon, WHAs, etc.), a QP should inspect and verify presence/absence.
• Within identified habitat, employ a QP to identify any roosts / hibernacula within 500 m of the proposed activity location. Avoid activities within 500 m of occupied roosts/hibernacula. In cases where the roost/hibernaculum is unoccupied, avoid activities involving short-term disturbances (i.e., pipelines, seismic lines) within 100 m of the feature.
• Maintain wildlife tree recruits for future nesting within identified habitat by retaining some large trees (30-50 cm dbh and all large (>50 cm dbh) ponderosa pine, and all large diameter (>30 cm dbh) wildlife trees (class 3-8).

Linear Features (roads, pipelines, seismic)

• Because roads have sustained activity levels following their construction, a 500 m setback should be maintained from all roosts/hibernacula. In identified habitat, the setback applies regardless of whether the feature is occupied or unoccupied by bats.

Wells and Facilities

• Because wells and facilities typically have sustained activity levels even following their construction and start-up, a 500 m setback should be maintained from roosts / hibernacula. In identified habitat, the setback applies regardless of whether the feature is occupied or unoccupied by bats.

All Activities

• The onus is on the applicant to refer to relevant region-specific timing windows for all high priority wildlife species and consider these as an inherent part of planning and operations, in order to alleviate species-specific impacts during key lifecycle timing.
• Where occupied maternity roosts have been identified, avoid construction activities between April and October (critical timing window for maternity roosts)unless activity is located outside of the required 500 m construction setback.
• Where occupied hibernacula have been identified, avoid construction activities between October and April (critical timing window for hibernacula) unless activity is located outside of the required 500 m construction setback.