Bats battle deadly fungus

Photo: Contributed

A deadly fungus that has wiped out a large portion of brown bats in Eastern Canada has landed on the West Coast.

White nose syndrome, is a fungal disease responsible for the death of millions of bats in North America.

There are confirmed cases in Washington state in 2016 and 2017, the presence of the fungus is very worrisome for the health of bat populations in British Columbia, with near 100 per cent mortality for some species of bats exposed to the fungus.

White nose syndrome does not affect humans. But, the public is being asked to help monitor and prevent the spread of the disease.

“We knew this deadly fungus was moving westward across North America” says Mandy Kellner, co-ordinator of the BC Community Bat Program, “but we thought we had many years to prepare”.

Instead, the disease has suddenly appeared in the West, spurring B.C. researchers into action.  

Not enough is known about where B.C. bats hibernate, so researchers are turning to the public for assistance in monitoring the progress of the fungus.

A typical first sign of the fungus is bats flying during the winter, unusual because they should be hibernating. Another surefire sign are dead bats.  

“We are encouraging the public to report dead bats or any sightings of winter bat activity to the Community Bat Project (CBP) toll-free phone number, website, or email. Bat carcasses will be submitted for testing for White Nose Syndrome and would provide the earliest indication of the presence of the disease in B.C.” says Kellner.

Reports of winter bat activity will help focus research, monitoring and protection efforts.