Girl Scout Champions Bat Conservation

By Fiona Tapp

aylor Rienhart, a dedicated Girl Scout from the San Francisco Bay Area, recently earned her Gold Award, the highest accolade a Girl Scout can earn. Her project, a multi-faceted initiative aimed at bat conservation, showcased her passion for environmental science and animal conservation.

Rienhart’s project included several key components to foster awareness and support for local bat populations. One of her primary aims was to educate the public on bats and help dispel common myths. To do this, she created an informative poster and table of interesting activities that are displayed at the wildlife education center at Friends of Edgewood Natural Reserve and through the creation of an educational Instagram account. Her campaign aimed to counter negative perceptions of bats by sharing engaging, informative content about their ecological roles and local species.

“My idea was to create this positive media campaign that would educate people about local bats,” she says. “I developed 30 different Instagram posts that were educational, fun, and interactive.”

Another significant aspect of Rienhart’s project involves habitat restoration. She partnered with the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory to remove invasive Australian saltbush on Bair Island, part of the Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge. This invasive plant disrupts local ecosystems, reduces biodiversity and, consequently, the availability of insects that bats rely on for food. Rienhart met U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland during one restoration event. Haaland praised Rienhart’s efforts and gave her a special challenge coin.

In addition to her hands-on conservation efforts, Rienhart led educational bat walks at Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge. These walks, integrated into the Refuge’s Twilight Walk program, educated the public about bats’ ecological importance. Rienhart answered questions and encountered many common myths that people still hold about bats.

“A lot of people thought that bats are blind,” she says. “There are a lot of people who have misconceptions about bats. Concerns about them being vampires were surprisingly prevalent.”

Rienhart also took on the practical task of building bat boxes. She taught a group of Girl Scouts, aged 8 to 11, how to construct these boxes. Now, the completed boxes provide roosting sites for bats on Stanford University’s campus.

Throughout her Gold Award project, which required a minimum commitment of 80 hours, Rienhart collaborated with numerous experts and organizations, including Bat Conservation International (BCI). She is also part of a team providing input for a new community science program that BCI is piloting, further cementing her role in the broader conservation community.

Rienhart’s dedication to bat conservation and her comprehensive approach to her Gold Award project not only highlights her leadership and commitment but also makes a lasting impact on her community. Her work ensures that bat conservation efforts will thrive in the Bay Area long after her project is complete.