Gotham Canopy Project
Mapping, protecting, and growing the green spaces bats call home.
The Gotham Canopy Project protects and restores the trees and habitats that sustain bats across New York City and beyond. By conducting detailed tree inventories and habitat assessments, we identify critical roosting sites, monitor ecosystem health, and guide urban forestry and conservation efforts. This project blends science, data, and on-the-ground action to ensure that both bats and the city’s green spaces can thrive together.
Explore the Canopy, Protect the Bats
Trees are more than just city greenery, they are essential homes for bats, providing roosting sites, foraging grounds, and spaces for courtship and social activity. Through the Gotham Canopy Project, we conduct detailed inventories of tree species at our monitoring sites and assess the surrounding habitats to understand how the presence, or absence, of native trees influences local bat populations.
This research goes beyond data collection. By uncovering the relationships between bats and their arboreal environments, we equip land managers, conservationists, and our own teams with actionable insights to enhance urban and regional bat conservation strategies.
We invite the community to join us in this work. Volunteers, students, and citizen scientists can participate in tree inventories, habitat assessments, and data collection, helping to strengthen the connection between urban forests and the bats that rely on them. Together, we can foster thriving ecosystems where both trees and bats flourish, ensuring a greener, healthier city for all.
Assessing Bat Habitats Across the City
The Gotham Canopy Project goes beyond tree inventories to understand and protect the habitats that sustain urban bats. Through comprehensive habitat assessments, we identify critical roosting sites, foraging areas, and landscape features that support bat populations—ensuring these environments remain safe and suitable for years to come.
Aerial Surveys with Drones
Using drones, our Urban Bat Lab can efficiently survey large or hard-to-reach areas while minimizing disturbance to sensitive wildlife. Aerial footage allows us to map habitat features, identify potential roosts, and assess foraging areas from above. Conducting surveys during the off-season, when foliage is less dense, improves visibility and supports proactive conservation planning.
Ground Assessments and Visual Inspections
On the ground, our team inspects trees, caves, and urban structures for signs of bat presence, including droppings, staining, and natural cavities. Trees with peeling bark, dead limbs, or cavities are prioritized, as these provide ideal roosting conditions. In urban areas, architectural details are examined to locate potential man-made roosts.
Habitat Feature Mapping and Vegetation Surveys
We catalog tree species and their distribution, identify water bodies, and evaluate vegetation types. Mapping landscape features such as cliffs, open fields, and streams helps us understand how bats navigate and forage across urban and natural habitats. Vegetation surveys track plant diversity, structure, and seasonal changes, giving insight into the microhabitats available to bats throughout the year.
Foraging Habitat Quality
To ensure bats have sufficient food resources, we assess insect populations and observe bat foraging behavior. By measuring the diversity and abundance of insects, we identify high-quality feeding areas that are essential for supporting healthy bat populations.
Through these combined efforts, the Gotham Canopy Project provides a data-driven foundation for habitat protection, urban forestry planning, and conservation advocacy—helping bats and the ecosystems they depend on thrive together.