The first bat was caught just as night set in, nearly immediately after biologists set the fine net designed to ensnare bats before they could sense its presence. Biologists immediately pulled the bat from the net and began the process of collecting data from it. Species, gender, and general age were determined. It was weighed. Wings were checked for damage – a sign of the deadly bat disease white-nose syndrome. It was tagged, then released. The scene was played out continuously from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. on an early August night, and this was but one of ten stations set up that night and the next two nights.