Bat Die-offs Spread to 11 States and Scientists Call It “Crisis”

“These bats have been around for some 50 million years and have been able to adapt very well to their natural conditions. And in a very short span under our watch, they are disappearing from our forests and ecosystems.”

- Scott Darling, Vermont Wildlife Biologist

Eleven states are now infected with the Geomyces destructans fungus as shown on map of Bat White Nose Syndrome (WNS) Occurrence by County, as of March 19, 2010. Also on March 19, Ontario, Canada, reported its first victims of white-nose fungus on bats in the Bancroft-Minden area 124 miles (200 km) west of Ottawa. See websites below. Map courtesy of Cal Butchkoski, Pennsylvania Game Commission. — Eleven states are now infected with the *Geomyces* *destructans* fungus as shown on map of Bat White Nose Syndrome (WNS) Occurrence by County, as of March 19, 2010. Also on March 19, Ontario, Canada, reported its first victims of white-nose fungus on bats in the Bancroft-Minden area 124 miles (200 km) west of Ottawa. See websites below. Map courtesy of Cal Butchkoski, Pennsylvania Game Commission.

March 25, 2010 Louisville, Kentucky - A week ago in Louisville, Kentucky, the federal Fish and Wildlife Service held a meeting with federal and state biologists March 15-19, to work on a national implementation plan for white-nose syndrome that continues to kill hibernating bats in huge numbers. In some bat hibernation sites this winter, 99% of the bats are dead! One site is the Graphite Mine in New York’s Adirondacks. This once had the largest count of Little Brown Bats in North America – about 200,000 animals. But recently, the count is down to only 2,000.

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