Devastating white-nose syndrome confirmed in Washington bat, first on West Coast
Spelling serious trouble for bats and all of us who enjoy evenings outdoors without swarms of disease-laden bugs, white-nose syndrome has been confirmed in a bat found in North Bend, Wash., according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The sick bat was a little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus). Hikers found the sick bat on March 11 and took it to authorities. The bat died two days later and subsequent tests confirmed it had white-nose syndrome.
It's the first confirmed case of the deadly bat disease in western North America, and given how the disease has spread in the eastern part of the US. since its discovery in 2006, it could devastate bat populations here. In a decade, the syndrome killed more than six million beneficial insect-eating bats in North America, the department said.
"We are extremely concerned about the confirmation of WNS in Washington state, about 1,300 miles from the previous westernmost detection of the fungus that causes the disease," said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe in a news release. "Bats are a crucial part of our ecology and provide essential pest control for our farmers, foresters and city residents, so it is important that we stay focused on stopping the spread of this fungus. People can help by following decontamination guidance to reduce the risk of accidentally transporting the fungus."
Unlikely to have been shipped here from east
Authorities have determined that the dead bat is a member of the sub-population of bats located in the Western US. So, the officials said during a news conference Thursday morning, the bat is unlikely to have come from infected East Coast areas (see map in gallery above).
The wildlife officials also pointed out that they have found the disease in just the one bat so far. Should the disease become widespread, insects such as mosquitoes that carry diseases like the West Nile Virus could become a serious problem.
The Washington wildlife department adds on its website:
Bats are valuable members of ecosystems around the world, saving farmers in the U.S. alone over $3 billion annually in pest control services. One colony of bats can consume many tons of insects that would otherwise consume valuable crops and forests, or otherwise threaten human health and well-being. Many species of bats are also valuable for the pollination of plants and dispersal of plant seeds.
"The implications of losing our bat population can be potentially quite dire," said department veterinarian Katie Haman said during the news conference. "At this point we don't have enough information to indicated if this is an end-of-one or just one case so far. So we have no idea what the impacts will be.
"The long term implications of catastrophic declines in our bat populations could be really hefty. Bats are incredibly important and the predictions from what we've learned in the Eastern ecosystem is that this could have really huge impacts."
Haman said the disease is transmitted primarily from bat to bat, although people can carry fungal spores on their clothing, shoes or caving gear.
"The bat found near North Bend most likely had been roused from hibernation and was attempting to feed at a time of very low insect availability," Haman said. "At this point we don't know where the infected bat may have spent the winter, but it seems likely that it was somewhere in the central Cascades."
Haman said Washington state has 15 species of bats that benefit humans by consuming large quantities of insects that can impact forest health and commercial crops.
WDFW advises against handling animals that appear sick or are found dead. If you find dead bats or notice bats exhibiting unusual behavior such as flying outside during the day or during freezing weather, please report your observation online at http://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/health/wns or contact the WDFW Wildlife Health Hotline at (800) 606-8768.
To learn more about WNS and access the most updated decontamination protocols and cave access advisories, visit www.whitenosesyndrome.org.
From bad to worse
"It's shocking and disturbing to see this disease reach Washington and indeed the western United States," said Mollie Matteson, senior scientist with the Center for Biological Diversity in a news release. "It certainly opens a new chapter in the spread of a disease that has already killed millions of bats. This is a wake-up call for land managers in the West to do what's needed to keep white-nose syndrome from spinning out of control before it's too late."
The center is a nonprofit conservation organization with members across the country. The group added:
White-nose syndrome has resulted in dramatic declines among several bat species, including the northern long-eared bat, little brown bat, tricolored bat and Indiana bat. It has been called the worst wildlife health crisis in recent memory, and has caused mortality rates ranging up to 100 percent among bats in affected caves. There is no known cure for the disease, which has afflicted seven bat species so far and has pushed several of them to the brink of regional extinction.
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