By: Rob Schorr
(CNHP Vertebrate Zoologist)
CNHP bat biology technician Katrina Pawlaczyk is helping Avon Park Air Force Range (APAFR) understand the distribution of the Florida bonneted bat (Eumops floridanus) in a host of south-Florida habitats. Her work is helping APAFR plan base maneuvers and land management to conserve this endangered bat. She deploys acoustic detectors that can record ultrasound throughout APAFR recording a host of Florida bat species, then she reviews those recordings to identify which calls come from the Florida bonneted bat. Additionally, Katrina is visiting prime bonneted bat habitat to locate roosts. Once found, she will conduct emergence counts to understand the number of bats using a roost. Her work is identifying critical bonneted bat habitat and advancing conservation efforts.
Katrina in the forests of APAFR 
An acoustic detector deployed at APAFR 
Gorgeous epiphytes of Florida wetlands
Katrina conducting bonneted bat roost counts 
Careful where you step; alligator in the wetlands
Parklike longleaf pine forests of APAFR 
The threatened gopher tortoise roaming the sandy flats
