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From Chattanooga Grotto
URGENT INFORMATION REGARDING BATS
Since 2006, bats in the northeastern United States have been dying from a poorly understood malady known as White-nose Syndrome (WNS). WNS has spread rapidly since 2006. As of February 2010, WNS has been confirmed as far south as Sullivan County, Tennessee (a few miles from the Tennessee/Kentucky border). An example of an infected Little Brown bat in a cave in Pendleton County, West Virginia cave is pictured to the right.
At this point, there is no reason to believe that WNS will not continue to spread farther south into Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia. As such, we as cavers need to be prepared and do what we can to prevent ourselves from becoming unwitting aids to the spread of this horrible disease. As an internal organization of the National Speleological Society, the Chattanooga Grotto supports the official NSS WNS Policy. We ask that everyone please respect any private, state, and federal cave closures.
When caving elsewhere, it is recommended that you clean your caving gear before entering any cave. Specific cleaning recommendations are listed on the gear decontamination recommendation page of the Northeast Region of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. If you have caved anywhere where WNS is known or suspected to be present, please do NOT enter unaffected caves using any gear that may have been contaminated.
To reiterate, please do not enter any caves if you feel there is any risk whatsoever that you may spread WNS.
Thank you for your cooperation in this very difficult time. If you would like to help in the Chattanooga Grotto's efforts to combat WNS in our area, please send an email to wns@chattanoogagrotto.org.
Please visit the NSS White Nose Syndrome Page if you would like to learn more.
Welcome
Welcome to the Chattanooga Grotto website!
If you poke around here long enough, you'll eventually notice that our website is a little different than most. Every single one of our grotto members has the ability to change any page they want, even ones that don't exist (yet)! This effectively puts creative control into the hands of whomever is creative. What a novel concept :-).
Who We Are
The Chattanooga Grotto is a formally chartered internal organization and chapter of the National Speleological Society (NSS) and a member of the Southeastern Regional Association (SERA). Most Chattanooga Grotto members are active TAG cavers. TAG is caver slang for "Tennessee Alabama Georgia", an area blessed with thousands of caves and known around the world as a caving mecca.
The goals and ideas of the NSS and the Chattanooga Grotto are the same. We are commited to the exploration, preservation and scientific study of caves and their environment. Membership in the NSS is a requirement for continuing membership in the Chattanooga Grotto. By working together with grottos in the NSS and caving clubs around the world, we are ensuring that the caves we enjoy will be protected for future generations.
The Chattanooga Grotto is run entirely by volunteers who donate their time to keeping things running. While all Grotto members participate, the Grotto Officers deserve special recognition for their consistent and continuing efforts. Thank you all very much, your work is much appreciated!
Click here for list of Grotto officers.
Joining the Grotto
If you'd like to join (we do have a lot of fun, after all), please print off the membership application, fill it out, then send it to:
Chattanooga Grotto of the NSS
PO Box 11506
Chattanooga, TN 37401-2506
Download ->Chattanooga Grotto Membership Application/Renewal Form<-
Please make your dues payable to 'Chattanooga Grotto of the NSS'.
Meeting Info
Meetings are always on the second Monday of the month and start at 7PM, eastern time. We are fortunate in that we get to meet at the Chattanooga Nature Center, 400 Garden Road, Chattanooga, TN 37419.
Mailing List
There is now a Grotto Member Mailing List.
About this Website
This website was initially set up and is largely maintained by Mike Harrison and Jonny Prouty.
