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The Absence Of Bats

I’ve been asking people all summer if they’ve noticed that the bats are gone and most people are surprised at first, then doubtful, then they Google it to find the truth, then they’re dismayed.

The disappearance of our bats is one of those things I can’t seem to wrap my mind around because bats were always an inextricable part of being at the lake. They were part of nature’s show and part of the story we tell about our own little place in the world.

Most people are pretty sad about their disappearance, especially when you take into account that bats eat 1,000 mosquitos an hour.

Here’s what you might not know: Bats play a significant role in our ecosystem. Beyond munching insects, they spread seeds and pollinate plants. In fact, they are the sole pollinators of a number of fruits.

And thanks to bats, we use fewer pesticides. One study published in Science magazine estimated bats can save farmers about $74 per acre in crop damage totaling $300 million annually. They’re the most eco-friendly critters around and scientists fear that the loss of our bat populations could cause an ecological ripple effect with potentially far-reaching consequences.

I wrote about our bats in this column a few years ago, but here’s the latest news about the bat population and white nose syndrome:

Millions of bats (an estimated 6.7 million) across 25 states and five Canadian provinces have died from white nose syndrome and it’s just landed in Nova Scotia and Wisconsin. The syndrome is moving north and west and has been detected as far south as Mississippi, adding to a death count that has already reached catastrophic numbers.

In April, white nose syndrome jumped across the Rocky Mountains. A bat was found in mid-March by hikers at the edge of the Cascade Mountains, an hour east of Seattle, Wash., signaling the inevitable spread of the disease across the continent.

One researcher called this news “a nightmare scenario.”

Seven bat species have been confirmed with white-nose syndrome, and according to Green Watch, as many as 99 percent of some of our most familiar species have vanished -?including almost all of those right here in Western New York. The little brown bat and northern long-eared bat comprised 95-98 percent of our region’s total bat population and monitoring efforts over the past decade have noted an alarming 99.9 percent reduction in these two species. Little brown bats, once the most common bat in the northeastern U.S., may be in danger of regional extinction within the next 15 years

Here’s something that might surprise you: healthy female bats can live up to 40 years but they only produce one pup a year, so scientists are making great efforts to monitor and preserve maternity colonies.

Thanks to decontamination methods and public outreach, the spread of the syndrome has been reduced in a few areas from 500 miles when it was first discovered to 20 miles, so progress is being made.

Scientists believe white nose syndrome has caused the most dramatic decline of North American wildlife in over 100 years, with potentially dire environmental consequences. It threatens ecosystems both in caves and above ground, and presents new challenges for conserving fragile cave environments.

Science Magazine provides a great explanation of the syndrome:

“Because the fungus thrives in cool temperatures, it attacks bats while they hibernate for the winter, when their immune systems are effectively shut down. The fungus may spread from bat to bat, and when the animal colonies disperse in the spring, the fungus may persist in cave sediment, poised to infect the next winter’s arrivals. Bats with white-nose syndrome rouse more frequently from their winter torpor, which causes them to waste precious body fat at the coldest time of the year. The fungus also infects the bats’ delicate wing membranes, eating away at the skin until the wings resemble torn, crumpled tissue paper.”

Some scientists are throwing the word “extinction” around for some bat species which would be a very sad state of affairs indeed. They say that the syndrome may lead to regional extinctions within 20 years since there is no known cure for the disease.

There was one bat flying around my street at the beginning of the summer but I haven’t seen him lately.

How about you? Anyone seeing any bats?

I’d like to hear from you.

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