Our experience at the 9th Conference on the Conservation and Study of Bats (SECEMU)

From December 6 to 8, 2024, the Environmental Ideas team had the honor of participating in the 9th Conference on the Conservation and Study of Bats organized by SECEMU (Spanish Society for the Conservation and Study of Bats). The event took place in the emblematic environment of the Church of Santo Domingo, in the heart of the Sierra de Aracena and Picos de Aroche Natural Park, Huelva.

These days are a key meeting point for researchers and professionals from Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar, where the latest advances in the study and conservation of chiroptera are shared. This year was no exception: the program included interesting conferences, round tables and poster sessions that enriched the exchange of knowledge.

Our contribution: modeling for conservation

On behalf of Ideas MedioAmbiental, six people from the team attended, highlighting the participation of our colleague Mar Salguero, who presented his paper entitled: “A Dynamic Modelling Tool to Predict Bat Fatalities in Wind Farm Repowering Scenarios”.

This research, developed during his stay at the University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD), Portugal, as part of his doctoral thesis at the University of Cádiz (UCA), offers a dynamic modeling tool that allows us to predict the mortality of bats in scenarios of repowering wind farms. This advance is essential to reconcile the development of renewable energies with the conservation of these species. By way of recognition, Mar's presentation was positively evaluated by the attendees, which highlights the relevance of this type of research to address current environmental challenges.

Workshops: practical learning and new tools

In addition to the main activities, we had the opportunity to participate in two workshops that were especially enriching:

• “Capturing the night with equations: harnessing statistics and machine learning in bat research”. A workshop that introduced us to the use of advanced data analysis and machine learning tools to better understand the behavior and conservation patterns of bats.
• “What does the www.quiropteros.org platform offer us? A platform for managing and storing bat data”. This workshop allowed us to learn more about this innovative platform designed to work with data on bats, facilitating collaboration between researchers and professionals in the sector.

Attending these workshops not only expanded our technical capabilities, but it also inspired us to incorporate these tools into our way of working, boosting efficiency and effectiveness in our conservation projects.

Access to the papers and conclusions of the SECEMU event

One of the great advantages of these days is that all the presentations were recorded and are available at the SECEMU YouTube channel. This allows anyone interested to access them, relive the event or discover the most recent research on bats. We invite you to explore this content and learn more about these fascinating animals.

We want to express our gratitude to SECEMU for organizing this event, which has once again encouraged the exchange of fundamental ideas for the conservation of these species so essential to our ecosystems. The conference provided us with the opportunity to share knowledge, learn from other researchers and reinforce our commitment to bat conservation.

At Ideas MedioAmbiental we continue to work with the objective of preserving the environment and developing solutions that mitigate environmental impact, especially in sectors such as renewable energy. You can get more details about SECEMU's days and activities by visiting its Official page.

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