Tag Archives: Bats
Bats and Disease
Surely bats are one of the most interesting and important wildlife pests we encounter in pest control. Bats become pests when they roost in or around human buildings. They can create a major odor problem with their quano, but even more importantly, can carry and transmit human disease. Bat carried diseases are known as zoonoses. A zoonosis is a disease that is normally harbored within an animal host, but given the right conditions can jump from animal to human. Rabies is a zoonosis, as is West Nile virus…. Read More →
DEADLY, BAT-KILLING EPIDEMIC TRAVELED BY SHOE A fungus that has caused the deaths of millions of North American bats traveled here on the bottom of a human shoe.
From Discovery News New clues are helping explain the mysteries surrounding white-nose syndrome, a devastating epidemic that has killed more than five and a half million bats in the eastern United States and Canada in just a few years. In the latest advance, the strongest evidence yet suggests that infection with a suspected fungus causes the deadly disease. What’s more, the fungus appears to have traveled to North America from Europe, most likely on a human shoe. Follow this link for the full story and to watch… Read More →
US bat population decimated by white-nose syndrome
US bat deaths climb over 5.5 million Fri, 2012-01-20 15:57 UFWS On the verge of another season of winter hibernating bat surveys, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologists and partners estimate that at least 5.7 million to 6.7 million bats have now died from white-nose syndrome. Biologists expect the disease to continue to spread. White-nose syndrome (WNS) is decimating bat populations across eastern North America, with mortality rates reaching up to 100 percent at many sites. First documented in New York in 2006, the disease has spread quickly… Read More →
Bats and Rabies Seminar set for April 27, 2011 in Amarillo
Texas Department of State Health Services, Region 1 Zoonosis Control and Texas AgriLife Extension Service will be offering a one day event to help those in the panhandle area learn about bats and how to avoid rabies. When: Wednesday, April 27, 2011 8:30 AM to 4:15 PM (1 hour lunch on own) Where: Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center,6500 Amarillo Blvd West, Amarillo, TX 79106 Cost: FREE Six hours of continuing education credit are approved for animal control officers and sanitarians for this class. Peace officers can receive… Read More →
Bats worth billions to agriculture
Pest-control services provided by insect-eating bats in the United States likely save the U.S. agricultural industry at least $3 billion a year, and yet insectivorous bats are among the most overlooked economically important, non-domesticated animals in North America, according to an analysis published in this week’s Science. “People often ask why we should care about bats,” said Paul Cryan, a U.S. Geological Survey research scientist and one of the study’s authors. “This analysis suggests that bats are saving us big bucks by gobbling up insects that eat or… Read More →