What's Killing to Our Bats?

The northeastern US is experiencing significant bat kills due to a fungus. The US Geological Survey reports that "A previously undescribed, cold-loving fungus has been linked to white-nose syndrome, a condition associated with the deaths of over one million hibernating bats in the northeastern United States."


Affected bats may be seen flying around during the day or in inclement weather, times when healthy bats are hibernating. Scientists are still trying to determine the origin of the fungus. It's not yet understood if the fungus is causing illness & death in bats or if it's a normal fungus in the bat environment that grows significantly when bats are ill. Scientists are working to get to the bottom of the issue as various species of bats are dying off in large numbers. According to the US Fish & Wildlife Service, "We have found sick, dying and dead bats in unprecedented numbers in and around caves and mines from Vermont to Virginia. In some hibernacula, 90 to 100 percent of the bats are dying."


Bats are very important to our ecosystem because they eat bugs. Without them, we could be overrun with insects that destroy crops and carry disease to humans and livestock. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has a good piece on this issue (read it here). This is a very serious issue, as some species could be facing extinction if we can't stop the bats from dying off. The PG article states, "The truth is bats are dying off so fast we might not be able to save them," said Dr. Reeder, who participated in last year's conference. "The little brown bat, the most common bat in North America, could be extinct and other species endangered in seven to 30 years."


The PG article also quotes Jeremy Coleman of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "I would say this [outbreak] is extremely serious, other times I've called it an ecological disaster," he said in a phone interview from Washington, D.C. "It's a real problem, chiefly because there's no end in sight and we have no way to stop it. I'd like to think we're making good progress, but I suspect sadly that's not true." These are frightening statement from the experts working to save our bats.


Assistance from the public is important and there's a lot that can be done to help. Many of the outbreaks are in recreational caving areas so researchers speculate that humans might be carrying spores from infected caves to other caves, leading to spread of the fungus. There are specific decontamination procedures for cavers to take to help prevent the spread. Citizens should report strange bat behavior and dead bats to their state wildlife management agency. Contact your representatives (local, state and federal) to request funding for this serious issue. Some of the largest bat hiberbacula in the country have been affected (such as Hellhole in West Virginia) and in many places, the mortality rate for bats in infected caves is 100%.