Wildlife in Abandoned Mines
Many types of wildlife use abandoned mines for either permanent or temporary habitat.
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Prior to closure of a mine opening, a biological survey is conducted in coordination with bat expert Dr. J. Scott Altenbach of the University of New Mexico to check for bat habitation. If bat activity is confirmed, the typical response is to construct a bat gate or bat cupola. Bat gates may be different sizes, shapes, or designs but usually involve a steel grid with openings large enough to allow passage for the bats, yet small enough to prevent human entry. Gates often are installed on mine openings with no visible signs of bat habitation in order to maintain ventilation patterns which may be essential to adjacent or connecting areas which do contain bats. The type of gate installed depends on the size of the opening and the species of bat using it. While most species tolerate gates and readily adapt to them, some species do not. For these bats a concrete wall blocking most of the opening is effective so long as a horizontal opening is left at the top of the closure to accommodate the bats. Other type gates may include a lockable gate to provide for future human entry if necessary. Bat gates must meet the primary objective of protecting the public from a hazardous condition and are sometimes more economical than conventional mine closure methods. The New Mexico AML Program often constructs cupolas over shafts used by bats to access mines. The steel bars of the cupolas are spaced appropriately to allow bats to fly through while keeping a majority of humans out. View an abandoned mine shaft from a bat's perspective. |
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Examples of Bat Cupolas | |
Examples of Adit Closures | ||
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