 The Illinois Natural History Survey at the University of Illinois,
the United States Forest Service at Shawnee National Forest, the
University of Illinois' Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory and the
USGS National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wis., assisted in
the discovery of white-nose syndrome, which was detected in LaSalle
County in north-central Illinois, Monroe County in southwestern
Illinois, and Hardin and Pope counties in extreme southern Illinois.
Little brown bats and northern long-eared bats from these
counties were submitted to the U of I Veterinary Diagnostic
Laboratory and the National Wildlife Health Center in Wisconsin in
early to mid-February. Both of these laboratories confirmed the
disease, while the fungal pathogen was isolated directly from a
LaSalle County bat and a Monroe County bat by the Illinois Natural
History Survey.
With confirmation of white-nose syndrome in Illinois, a total of
20 states, mostly in the eastern U.S., plus five Canadian provinces
have now been confirmed with the infection present. Currently seven
hibernating bat species are affected: little brown bat, big brown
bat, northern long-eared bat, tri-colored bat, eastern small-footed
bat, the endangered Indiana bat and the endangered gray bat. The
disease continues to spread rapidly and has the potential to infect
at least half of the bat species found in North America.
White-nose syndrome is not known to affect people, pets or
livestock but is harmful or lethal to hibernating bats, killing 90
percent or more of some species of bats in caves where the fungus
has lasted for a year or longer, according to the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service. The disease is known to be transmitted primarily
from bat to bat, but spores of Geomyces destructans, the non-native,
cold-loving fungus that causes white-nose syndrome, may be
inadvertently carried between caves and abandoned mines by humans on
clothing, footwear and caving gear. The name of the disease refers
to the white fungal growth often found on the noses of infected
bats.
White-nose syndrome was first detected in New York State in 2006
and has killed more than 5.7 million cave-dwelling bats in the
eastern third of North America as it has spread south and west
across the landscape. A map of the current spread of white-nose
syndrome is available at
http://whitenosesyndrome.org/resources/map.
Research has shown that bats infected with white-nose syndrome,
or WNS, are awaking from hibernation as often as every three to four
days as opposed to the normal every 10 to 20 days. The fungus
damages the connective tissues, muscles and skin of the bats while
also disrupting their physiological functions. The bats wake up
dehydrated and hungry during the cold winters when there are no
insects to eat.
"Although its arrival was anticipated, the documented spread of
WNS into Illinois is discouraging news, mainly because there is no
known way to prevent or stop this disease in its tracks," said Joe
Kath, endangered species manager for the Illinois Department of
Natural Resources.
"Pest-control services provided by insect-eating bats in the
United States likely save the U.S. agricultural industry several
billion dollars a year, and yet insectivorous bats are among the
most overlooked, economically important non-domesticated animals in
North America."
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"Isolating the fungal pathogen directly from a bat is the 'gold
standard' for confirming this disease, and the Bat WNS team at the
University of Illinois was able to do this in our laboratory," said
Andrew Miller, mycologist at the Illinois Natural History Survey.
"We are saddened by the discovery of WNS in Illinois," said
Jeremy Coleman, national WNS coordinator for the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service. "We will continue to work with our partners to
address this devastating disease and work towards conservation of
bat species in North America."
Because Illinois and several other Midwestern states are home to
many federally endangered bat species, as well as some of the
largest hibernating bat populations in the country, the complete
closure of all IDNR-owned or managed caves within the state of
Illinois was enacted in 2010. In addition, all caves within the
Shawnee National Forest, managed by the U.S. Forest Service, have
been formally closed since 2009. Both the IDNR and USFS will be
evaluating these caves on an annual basis, and the closure orders
will remain in effect for the benefits of bat conservation until
further notice.
Unfortunately, research indicates that the fungus that causes
white-nose syndrome remains in caves where bats hibernate even when
bats are not present, and the IDNR remains concerned that people may
inadvertently carry WNS out of the caves with them.
"The IDNR recognizes that continued cave closures will require
patience from the caving community and other citizens. However, the
observed devastation to bat populations and the evidence for
human-assisted spread justifies that we exercise an abundance of
caution in managing activities that impact caves and bats," Kath
added. "We understand these measures will not be a cure for WNS, but
they are necessary to help slow the spread of this affliction and to
reduce the risks to surviving bat populations in North America."
Bats are the only major predator of night-flying insects and play
a crucial role in the environment. A single big brown bat can eat
between 3,000 and 7,000 mosquitoes in a night, with large
populations of bats consuming thousands of tons of potentially
harmful forest and agricultural pests annually. The bat conservation
community is deeply concerned and involved with fighting the spread
of white-nose syndrome. Researchers in Illinois and across the U.S.
are working diligently on finding a way to mitigate this fatal
disease. Federal, state and local organizations continue to focus on
conservation, containment and education.
[Text from
Illinois Department of
Natural Resources
file received from the
Illinois Office of Communication and Information] |
