The agenda for the ongoing Whitle Nose Syndrome meeting is posted below. These links will be updated with notes from sessions and other material as it is made available.

WNS Liaison Peter Youngbaer is in attendance.

Watch these links for updates as the meeting proceeds.

Day 1, June 9: White-Nose Syndrome Science Strategy Meeting

The primary goals of the White-nose Syndrome (WNS) Science Strategy Meeting are to identify relevant questions and recommend appropriate research directions that can be used by investigators and management agencies to help determine the cause or causes of WNS-related bat mortality in the northeastern United States. Any recommended research priorities and protocols that result from the meeting are intended to advance our understanding of bat mortality associated with WNS, and ensure the viability of surviving bat populations in the affected region and beyond.

Day 2, June 10: Managers Meeting Agenda

In order to facilitate discussions of addressing future needs, an overview of state and federal agency activities to date should be provided in a one-page narrative to be distributed at the meeting. Template for narratives will be provided in advance. Presenters are asked to bring 100 copies of their summaries to the meeting.

Day 3, June 11: Managers and Lab Scientists Meeting

Goal for the Day: To agree on how (i.e., activities, surveys, research) state and federal agencies can contribute to determining the cause(s) of WNS. The key outcomes are defining what each group (Lab scientists vs. managers) can do to support each other in determining the cause of WNS.

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The meeting started at 9 A.M on Monday. with almost all invited participants in their seats and ready to go. Agency representatives from 14 states (PA, NY, MD, MA, KY, WV, CT, WI, NH, NJ, MO IN, VT, IL), 6 universities (Fordham, Bucknell, Cornell, Boston University, U-C Santa Cruise and Saint Paul's School), at least 5 federal agencies (USFWS, USGS, National Park Service, USDA, and the US Army Corp of Engineers), and 5 private conservation organizations (Bat World NOVA, Bat Conservation International, Northeastern Cave Conservancy, Inc, The NSS, and the National Cave and Karst Symposium Steering Committee. The Ontario Minestry of Natural Resources is also represented.