Expressing support for the designation of the week of October 24, 2023, to October 31, 2023, as “BatWeek”.

Expressing support for the designation of the week of October 24, 2023, to October 31, 2023, as “BatWeek”.

Whereas bats are vital to the sustainability of natural ecosystems, national economies, and human health by controlling damaging insect pests, pollinating plants that produce fruits and vegetables, dispersing seeds to ensure healthy functioning forests and fields, and saving farmers in the United States more than $3,000,000,000 in pest control every year;

Whereas bats have captured the human imagination through backyard sightings, folklore, art, myths, and legends, making outreach and education about the importance of bats instrumental;

Whereas bats are present throughout the world, except in extremely cold regions, and are the second-largest order of mammals with over 1,400 species;

Whereas White-nose syndrome, a fungal disease that has killed millions of bats in North America, has now spread to 40 States and 12 species of hibernating bats;

Whereas the disease has caused significant declines in populations of the tricolored bat, the little brown bat, and the northern long-eared bat, which is listed as endangered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.);

Whereas the Department of the Interior, through the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the United States Geological Survey, the National Park Service, and the Bureau of Land Management, is leading the international response to the disease in partnership with the United States Forest Service and more than 150 Federal and State agencies, Tribes, nongovernmental organizations, and universities;

Whereas the United States Geological Survey and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service co-lead the multinational, multiagency North American Bat Monitoring Program, which, since 2015, has consolidated nearly 89,000,000 records from partners in 49 States, 9 Canadian Provinces, and 19 Tribal organizations, demonstrating the power of collaborative conservation science to monitor changes in North American bat populations;

Whereas the United States Geological Survey conducts scientific research on bats that helps resource managers and policymakers make informed decisions regarding the conservation of bats across North America; and

Whereas, in the past decade, the international partnership of States, Tribes, Federal agencies, non-governmental organizations, and other institutions has made extraordinary progress to understand white-nose syndrome, slow the spread of the disease, and develop treatments that hold promise for ending this epidemic: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved,