WNS spread in Vermont

[ahicks51]

From the ProMED digest, part of the International Society for Infectious Diseases.



Date: Tue, 9 Feb 2010 13:43:57 -0500 (EST)
WHITE NOSE SYNDROME, BATS - USA: (VERMONT)
******************************************
A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
<http://www.isid.org>

Date: Sun 7 Feb 2010
Source: Bennington Banner [edited]
<http://www.benningtonbanner.com/ci_14355178>


Fatal bat syndrome spreads in Vermont
- -------------------------------------
An illness that state biologists believe is killing off the bat
population is spreading north.

Ryan Smith, a biologist with the Vermont Department of Fish and
Wildlife, said Wednesday [3 Feb 2010] that white nose syndrome (WNS)
was first discovered in Vermont 2 years ago, in Dorset. "Although
reports are concentrated around Johnson at this time, we are also
receiving scattered reports from other sections of the state," he
said. "Unfortunately, WNS has continued to spread north, and we
expect to receive more reports of abnormal bat activity from the
northern half of the state. Last winter [2008-09] reports were
concentrated in southern Vermont, but bat populations there have been
devastated over the past 2 winters."

Smith said that the current theory is that the bats are being
infected with a fungus that irritates them into waking up more often
while they are hibernating. He said the bats then burn through their
winter fat reserves faster than they should, and die. He said that a
bat normally wakes up every 2 weeks during the winter, but with WNS,
it's closer to every 4 or 5 days.

The public is still being asked to report sightings of dead bats or
unusual bat behavior, such as flying in the daytime or on warm,
winter days. Such behavior is often a symptom of WNS. "As a result,
people living near some caves or mines are seeing increasing activity
and mortality in these animals. Some are finding dead bats on their
porches or window screens, observing bats flying in the day, or
having bats enter their houses," said Scott Darling, the state
biologist at the head of the WNS study.

Smith said that he spoke with homeowners Wednesday [3 Feb 2010] who
reside in Johnson, who reported roughly 2-dozen dead bats on their
porch over the last week.

He said that while the state continues to monitor the problem,
serious studies have been hampered by a lack of funding. "Funding is
still the major issue with it," he said, adding that biologists still
aren't sure how the fungus relates to bat mortality or if the fungus
is spread from bat to bat or is part of the cave environment. Smith
said that bats from Wisconsin have been imported to a cave where the
bat population was wiped out to see if the bats will contract WNS. He
said that the study is still ongoing and the idea is to see if the
problem comes from the cave or other bats. Smith said that biologists
hope that the fungus is spread from bat to bat, otherwise some method
of cleaning the caves will have to be devised. He said that New York
is currently experimenting with spraying caves with a fungicide in
order to halt the progress of the syndrome. Should that method prove
to work, Vermont may consider it.

The disease was first documented at the Howe Caverns, in central New
York, Smith said. Because the caverns are open to the public, one
theory is that the fungus was brought in from Europe by human foot
traffic. Smith said that European bats infected with the fungus have
not suffered like the ones in the United States, although no one
knows why [see ProMED-mail archive no. 20100108.0091]. "If this goes
unchecked we could very well see bat extinction in the Northeast,"
Smith said, adding that dead bats have not been reported in areas
that were hit hard. "We aren't seeing the mortality this year [2010],
which isn't really a good sign. It indicates that they were wiped out
over the 2 years."

The department is asking people to not attempt to rehabilitate sick
bats. Darling said that bats leaving caves are too emaciated to be
helped by anything short of intensive care by trained professionals
and there is a danger of spreading the illness by moving the bats. He
said that people should continue to report sick or dead bats to the department.

[Byline: Keith Whitcomb]

- --
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
<promed@promedmail.org>

[Johnson is in northern Vermont, not far from the Quebec border, and
can be located on the map at
<http://www.fallingrain.com/world/US/VT/Johnson.html>.
The HealthMap/ProMED-mail interactive map of Vermont is available at
<http://healthmap.org/r/016F>. - Mod.MHJ]

[see also:
White nose syndrome, bats - France: 1st identification, non-lethal
20100108.0091
2009
- ----
White nose syndrome, bats - USA (14) 20091014.3538
White nose syndrome, bats - USA (13): (NJ) 20090712.2495
White nose syndrome, bats - USA (12) 20090510.1750
White nose syndrome, bats - USA (11) 20090510.1743
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (10): cave closings 20090507.1703
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (09): (VA)susp. 20090427.1590
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (08): (MA) 20090414.1413
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (07) 20090320.1110
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (06): (PA) RFI 20090311.1011
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (05): (PA) 20090309.0975
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (04): (PA) 20090306.0931
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (03): (WV) susp 20090220.0711
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (02): (northeast) 20090208.0578
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA: (Northeast) 20090129.0401
2008
- ---
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (07): (Northeast) 20081102.3448
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (06): (Northeast) 20080331.1195
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (05): (Northeast) 20080304.0898
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (04): (Northeast) 20080304.0880
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (03): 2004 Dorset bat colony gate 20080221.0709
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA (02): (Northeast) 20080220.0687
White-nose syndrome, bats - USA: (Northeast) 20080219.0675]
...................................mpp/mhj/mj/mpp

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[PYoungbaer]

A caution about this article: the NY experiments are not "spraying caves with fungicide."

Reporters frequently interchange the words "cave" and "mine," believing the general public doesn't distinguish between the two. I've called some reporters on it, and they now "get it," but I can't catch them all.

New York's experiments are taking place in small, select, sealed (gates and screens) mines, not caves. The bats are being directly swabbed with the substances being tested.

This is similar to the testing of a fungicide in a Pennsylvania mine (Dr. Hazel Barton, KY, PA Game Commission, Bucknell University), which is an aerosolized method (i.e. substance in open container which vaporizes).

The scientists understand that caves are much more complex natural ecosystems, which is why these tests are taking place in man-made mines. Field tests are critical to understanding whether what works in a lab may actually have a practical field application.

By the way, the Vermont mine described in the article is an old talc mine, deep, multi-level, extremely humid (flooded in its lower levels), with a bat gate over its vertical entrance. We don't believe anyone has been in in several years, but the bats are flying and dying, clearly affected by WNS.

[BrianC]

First off I don't see why these so called scientists can't include the possibility that bats have been coming here directly from the ships since the CDC has definitely confirmed this!!!!!!!! (human FOOT TRAFFIC is pure conjecture) Second well I guess there is no second!

[graveleye]

We might as well get used to it, but the one thing that most scientists are in consensus about is that human beings cause every problem that occurs on the planet. Apparently it's become increasingly difficult for them to see anything beyond anthropogenic causes of any affliction.

[PYoungbaer]

Here's an article about the topical application going on in NY mines:

http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/st ... WYORKSTATE

[graveleye]

State wildlife biologist Al Hicks said Tuesday that researchers will revisit the mine at the end of winter to see if the anti-fungal compounds -- similar to those used to treat athlete's foot -- help the bats survive.

tough acting Tinactin.

[BrianC]

The article doesn't say what mine this is?