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A photographed bat with white-nose syndrome.
A photographed bat with white-nose syndrome.
Photo: Contributed Photo / Contributed Photo
Photo: Contributed Photo / Contributed Photo
A photographed bat with white-nose syndrome.
A photographed bat with white-nose syndrome.
Photo: Contributed Photo / Contributed Photo
There has been a dramatic decline in Connecticut's population because of white-nose syndrome, the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said.
"Several species of bats that call Connecticut have been devastated by white-nose syndrome, so much so that they are listed as endangered on the Connecticut's List of Endangered, Threatened and Special Concern Species," DEEP said.
The species added to the state's endangered list are the little brown beats, the northern long-eared beats (which are also federally threatened) and the tricolored beats.
The disease affects hibernating and is caused by a fungus. The fungus looks like a white fuzz on a baton and grows in cold, dark and damp places. It attacks bare skin while bats hibernate. As it grows, they become more active and burn up the fat they need to survive the winter.
Bats with white-nose syndrome might exhibit strange behavior, including flying outside in the daytime in winter.
White-nose syndrome has been found in 33 states in the U.S., including Connecticut, and in seven Canadian provinces.
The first widespread signs of white-nose syndrome appeared in cellars near Albany, N.Y., in 2007. But photographs from cave explorers in 2006 showed what might have been the first unofficially documented cases in North America.
The disease was unknown to science until it was discovered in North American bats. It continues to spread across the nation and Canada, mainly through bat-to-bat contact. A map with confirmed locations of the disease can be found at whitenosesyndrome.org/static-page/wns-spread-maps.
In some areas of North America, white-nose syndrome has killed 90 to 100 percent of bats; millions of bats across the country have been killed by the disease. The hardest hit species seems to be the northern long-eared beats, the little brown beats and the tricolored beats.
Currently, there is no cure for white-nose syndrome. Scientists from across the globe are working to study the disease, and its spreads and infects. Several experimental treatments, including a vaccine and changing bat habitats, are in progress and are expected to lead to increased survival rates of disease.
Any sightings of bats during the winter should be reported to the Connecticut Wildlife Division to help monitor white-nose syndrome. More information can be found at https://go.usa.gov/xPmDn.
Bats are crucial for healthy ecosystems. Bats provide economic benefits to agriculture and forestry by controlling insects.
Original Article can be found here
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