Debbie C. Buecher and Ronnie M. Sidner- Bats of Kartchner Caverns State Park, Arizona. Journal of Cave and Karst Studies 61(2): 102-107. BATS OF KARTCHNER CAVERNS STATE

Kartchner Caverns, in southeastern Arizona, is a summer maternity roost for approximately 1000-2000 cave myotis (Myotis velifer). The pregnant females first arrive at the cave in late April, give birth in June, and have left by mid- September. These bats are an important element in the cave ecosystem because their excrement introduces nutrients, which support a complex invertebrate cave fauna. Bat pop-ulation densities and emergence behavior was monitored between 1988-1991. Other bat species seen using the entrance areas of the cave include Corynorhinus townsendi and Choeronycteris mexicana. Because bats are easily disturbed by human intrusion into the roost, the baseline study was accomplished using low-disturbance techniques in an effort to provide the greatest amount of data with the least dis-turbance to the bat colony. These techniques included limited visual observations in the roost and net-ting bats only on the surface at a nearby water tank. During the baseline study, an episode of predation by a carnivore (Bassariscus astutus) caused the bats to abandon the site for a short time. Carbon-14 dat-ing of guano from the Throne and Rotunda Rooms suggests that Myotis velifer used the Back Section of Kartchner Caverns 50-45 years Ka. The purpose of the Kartchner Caverns bat study was to obtain a biological inventory of the bats using the cave at base