Mystery Cave has been gated by the BLM to prevent unauthorized 

 access in an attempt to protect cave resources, although during 

 the summer of 1989 the gate was found to be broken. The U.S. 

 Forest Service may wish to consider gating Little Ice Cave, given 

 the caves extensive use by bats. If Four-eared Bat Cave is found 

 to be" inhabited by Plecotus townsendii at any time of the year, 

 the BLM may wish to consider similar action, as this species is 

 known to be very sensitive to human disturbance (Center, 198 6) . 

 Such gates should be less susceptible to vandalism than the gate 

 at Mystery Cave. While access to Four-eared Bat Cave is more 

 difficult than access to the caves discussed above, the sensitive 

 nature of Plecotus townsendii may warrant special consideration 

 in protecting its roosting sites and hibernacula. 



Gyp Spring is an important foraging site for several species of 

 bats, including the pallid bat. The BLM currently fences only the 

 head of the spring. It would greatly reduce resource conflicts 

 between grazing and wildlife and riparian management to fence the 

 riparian community downstream from this spring as well. It would 

 be beneficial for all species of wildlife using this unique 

 riparian area if livestock use were restricted. 



RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FURTHER WORK 



An examination of the river between Barry's Landing and Devil's 

 Overlook revealed numerous inlets extending from the main river 

 body which would provide calmer water for foraging bats. The 

 ends of some of these fingers could be netted, but netting in the 

 river bottom would be difficult. Euderma maculatum would be best 

 detected in this area by listening for its echolocation calls, 

 which are audible to the unaided human ear (Woodsworth et al., 

 1981) . A bat detector could be used to detect this and other 

 species. 



Two ponds on the plateau above the river near Layout Creek Ranger 

 Station could provide good netting opportunities, as would sewage 

 lagoons near the Horseshoe Bend area and ponds on private land in 

 the same area. The ponds at Layout Creek, as well as being near 

 the river, are approximately 5 km from Mystery Cave and may be 

 used by some of the bats roosting there. Another potential 

 netting spot in the area is the Tillet Springs Fish Rearing 

 Station northeast of Horseshoe Bend. 



Both Mystery Cave and Little Ice Cave appear to be important 

 habitat for bats. It should be determined if use of these caves 

 by bats is continuous or seasonal. Netting should be conducted 

 throughout the spring, summer, and fall, and visit these caves 

 during the winter to determine if bats use the caves as 

 hibernacula. Very little is known about the wintering habits of 

 bats in Montana, and in the case of Myotis evotis , nothing is 

 known about its hibernating habits throughout its range (Manning 



17 



