Bat roosts provide critical shelter for maternity colonies, hibernating populations, and daily roosting, and their conservation is essential for bat welfare and population health.
Bat roost welfare has two critical seasons: summer maternity colonies where pups are raised and winter hibernation where bats must not be disturbed. Disturbing hibernating bats through cave exploration or renovation of buildings where bats overwinter causes bats to arouse from torpor, burning fat reserves that cannot be replenished until spring insects emerge. A bat disturbed too many times during winter will starve before spring. Roost conservation requires year-round awareness of seasonal use and appropriate protection during both critical periods.