The Nittany Grotto and the NSS are organizations very tied to cave conservation. We as cavers support and campaign for protection of cave resources, mineral, hydrological, and biological. To this end Nittany Grotto members support a voluntary moratorium on caving in the following caves during periods critical to PA’s bat populations. This is per motions passed in Nittany Grotto meetings to formally adopt a stance to protect threatened, endangered, and large populations of bats. The Nittany Grotto encourages other grottos to adopt and publish this list in both paper and web format.

These measures are the action of the Nittany Grotto and may not represent policies taken by landowners. Some of these caves are closed year round, some have gates that are locked in winter, and some have no access restriction. The important part is that we as grotto members and responsible cavers support and educate others on the need to NOT visit these caves between September 1^st and May 1^st of each year. This gives us a four-month period where bats are not impacting your choice of what cave to visit.

In PA bats only use caves for fall swarming (The exact purpose of this behavior is speculative in nature but involves teaching young where the caves are and mating/courting behaviors.) and hibernating. As close as WV bats will use caves to rear their young (PA caves are too cold for this), which means caves are closed for the summer as well as winter when both hibernating and maternity colonies use a cave.

This list is organized by county; mines are not included unless they intersect significant cave passage.

As we learn more about these specific sites closure dates may change, some caves may not have fall swarms, some may have populations that stay in hibernation further into spring. With luck, funding, and research, these dates will become more cave specific. These dates do represent a win-win situation, we cavers get to see the caves and the bats are protected. Only by supporting and protecting cave resources will cavers maintain their reputation as a major conservation force.