Administered locally by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ohio Ecological Services Field Office.
This page summarizes the rule for homeowners and is not legal advice. Confirm your specific job with the authority above.
What the guidance says
The Ohio Division of Wildlife (ODNR-DOW) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Ohio Field Office publish joint guidance for bat surveys (May 2026). It says that during spring, summer and early fall all bats in Ohio use trees as roosts, and that several federally or state endangered species rely on trees for maternity roosts, where pups are born and raised until they can fly on their own in late summer.
For projects within the buffer of a captured or recorded state-listed endangered bat, the recommended tree clearing dates are October 1 to March 31. That is the winter window, when the bats are not using summer roost trees.
When the winter window is not required
The guidance describes a way out of the winter-only window. If a presence and probable-absence survey finds no state-listed endangered bat, year-round tree clearing may proceed for five years before a new survey is needed under state guidance. Surveys in Ohio must be done between June 1 and August 15.
It also says that limited summer tree clearing within a capture buffer may be permitted in certain circumstances, after consulting ODNR-DOW, for projects that remove 10 or fewer trees, remove only conifers, or are removing invasive species. These are handled case by case.
What if you clear in summer without a survey?
The guidance's FAQ addresses a project with no bat records in the area that wants to clear trees between April 1 and September 30. A survey may be done between June 1 and August 15, and it says that if no survey is performed, the presence of listed bats is assumed. In plain terms, summer clearing is the case that needs extra steps, and winter clearing is the simple one.
What this page does not tell you
The document states that it applies to state recommendations only and that you should contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to find out whether federal consultation is also needed. It does not say whether a particular private parcel in Richland County sits within a capture or roost buffer, and it does not address brush, mowing or stump work. This page summarizes the published guidance and is not legal advice.
For anything beyond a simple winter clearing, the guidance points to the agencies: ODNR-DOW for state records and the USFWS Ohio Ecological Services Field Office for federal questions.
How this affects scheduling
If you are planning to remove trees, scheduling the work between October and March keeps you inside the window the agencies recommend. Brush, small growth and open-ground work are not what the document is about, so those jobs are easier to schedule around the calendar. Tell us when you plan to build or clear and we will write the timing into the scope.