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Lower Township near Cape May Point in Cape May County, New Jersey — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
 

Bats on the Move

Bat Migration

— Wildlife Migration —

 
 
Bats on the Move Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Coughlin, August 27, 2009
1. Bats on the Move Marker
Inscription. From April to October, New Jersey’s bats feed almost exclusively on nocturnal insects, eliminating thousands of mosquitoes and flying pests each night. But when winter comes, most bats migrate to find alternative food sources or hibernation roosts.

New Jersey has nine species of bats. The red bat, hoary bat, and silver-haired bat migrate south for the winter. Similar to patterns of migratory birds, these bats cross the Delaware Bay and follow the Atlantic Coastline until they arrive in the warmer areas of the southeastern United States. There, insects are more plentiful and hibernation is shorter. In the spring, they return to their summer roosts in the north.

Many of New Jersey’s more common bats, such as the big brown bat and the little brown bat, migrate to winter roosts in mines, caves, and buildings within a few hundred miles of their summer roosts. Ideal winter roosts are cool enough to lower the bats’ metabolism without freezing them and moist enough to prevent dehydration.

Protecting migratory and resident bat populations, their roosts, and their summer and winter habitats helps to control mosquitoes and many agricultural pests.
 
Erected by State of New Jersey – Division of Parks & Forestry.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Animals
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Science & Medicine.
 
Location. 38° 55.961′ N, 74° 57.468′ W. Marker is near Cape May Point, New Jersey, in Cape May County. It is in Lower Township. Marker can be reached from Lighthouse Avenue, on the left when traveling south. Marker is in Cape May Point State Park, at the northeast end of the parking lot. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 616B Seagrove Ave, Cape May NJ 08204, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Ridges, Rivers and Coastlines (a few steps from this marker); Shorebirds Galore (within shouting distance of this marker); Flipper and Friends (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); What is it? (about 300 feet away); Longshore Sediment Movement (about 500 feet away); Swarms of Dragonflies (about 500 feet away); Fragile Flyers (about 500 feet away); Maritime Sentinels (about 700 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Cape May Point.
 
More about this marker. Four photographs of bats appear on the marker. A set of three of these photos have a caption of “The red bat (Lasiurus borealis ) is one of the few bat species to have more than one offspring. This adult female roosts with her young on a tree branch. To study their migration, researchers
Marker in Cape May Point State Park image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Coughlin, August 27, 2009
2. Marker in Cape May Point State Park
This marker is part of the New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail Route.
capture bats in mist nets (left). A small identification band is attached to the bat’s wing (right) before it is released. If the bat is found later, the band will help identify where it came from.”
Under a photo of a bat on the right of the marker is the caption, “Bats use echolocation, the process of bouncing sound off of an object, to find its insect prey. A single little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) can consume up to 600 mosquitoes in an hour.”
 
Also see . . .  New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail Route. National Park Service website. (Submitted on June 30, 2011, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.) 
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on February 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on June 30, 2011, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. This page has been viewed 679 times since then and 4 times this year. Photos:   1, 2. submitted on June 30, 2011, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.

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Mar. 19, 2024