NEW Bat Fungus Geomysis destructans OUTBREAK 7 Million Dead in 16 States, Countdown to Extinction!

yea its quite sad that Boston researchers have predicted that the the most common North American bat species will be all but extinct within 20 years, causing a far-reaching impact that will change the balance of nature between humans and insects.

And... all because of a "new" fungus.

For some reason, this fungus reminds me Morgellons and its recent link to a new slime mold



maybe this is a depopulation experiment? Today bats, tomorrow humans?

Originally posted by BiggerPicture
...by North Americans if this outbreak isn't contained!

already, thousands of caves in 33 states have been sealed off, but the disease continues to claim millions of North American bats' lives.

it is potentially zoonotic new fungus - it CAN infect & survive on human in cold/temperate conditions but not on humans in their artificially warmed dwellings.

en.wikipedia.org...

Alan Hicks with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has described the impact as "unprecedented" and "the gravest threat to bats ... ever seen." The mortality rate in some caves has exceeded 90 percent.A once common species, little brown myotis, has suffered a major population collapse and may be at risk of rapid extinction in the northeastern US within 20 years from mortality associated with WNS. There are currently 9 hibernating bat species confirmed with infection of Geomyces destructans and at least 5 of those species have suffered major mortality. Some of those species are already listed as endangered on the US endangered species list, including the Indiana bat, whose primary hibernaculum in New York has been affected.The long-term impact of the reduction in bat populations may be an increase in insects, possibly even leading to crop damage or other economic impact in New England.

There will likely be an increase in crop damages, shortages, and increase in INFECTIOUS DISEASES spread through increased populations of biting insects that we rely on bats to keep under control.

Since first discovered in 2007 in New York, white-nose synd_javascript:yvid()rome has spread to 16 states, including Virginia and Maryland, and four Canadian provinces.

edit on 25-3-2012 by BiggerPicture because: (no reason given)

S+F ----> WHY DON'T THEY

WARM THE BAT CAVES????

SOLVED! SIMPLEZ!

reply to post by neotech1neothink


Shoot they can have my space heater. It actually is a bit frightening, no bats more bugs. The insectoids walk among us. Oh hellI bet the insectoids created this disease to empower their brethren.

I'm worried that so many people are making light of this. The OP might have blown it a bit by the choice of words for the headline the first time through, but the issue really IS this serious.

There are only a few index species in the world, as I understand this, that would effect the entire balance of nature of they were removed from it. Only a few...that REALLY matter and wouldn't simply cause others to alter their dinner habits or something. Bats are one of those on a very short list.

This isn't new...it's been going on now for many years as a couple in the thread have apparently been following too. For every 50 Elenin stories to be all sexy and scary in headlines...there lurks one like this. It's not sexy, it's stinky and hard to really make the mental connection for...but it could be far worse than any comet.

I do hope they get a handle on what is killing our Bats...AND bees...and other index species.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000

Originally posted by Wrabbit2000
I'm worried that so many people are making light of this. The OP might have blown it a bit by the choice of words for the headline the first time through, but the issue really IS this serious.

It's not the poster....I'm convinced it's the general public.

I've been tracking this one for years.

Mystery Disease Forcing Bats to Extinction: White Nose Syndrome (WNS)

It never seemed really important to the ATS membership, or people in my real life for that matter.

Truly a sad a disturbing issue.

S & F

reply to post by neotech1neothink


Heating the caves is one method being attempted however results so far have been negligible. I don't think the title of the op is alarmist either. Little Browns are not the only bat species affected. Up to 95% mortality rates are reported for all cave dwelling bat species in caves where WNS has been discovered. This recent article here Economic Importance of Bats has valued the contributions of bats, in the form of pest control, to agriculture at more than $3.7 billion dollars a year.

Im with The OP and the people who have answered saying this is very important.

Also I notice the OP says the disease could affect Humans, but not ones that live in Warm homes.

Could this affect the poor who cant afford heating, and Vagrants/ Tramps??

Are we looking at a depopulation attempt of poor Humans?? ie Tramp wipe out?

reply to post by BiggerPicture


as a new englander and armature mycologist I am not surprised, I know from feild craft you don't f*ck with fungus, and I've read stories here on ATS of fungus destructions of tress (think it was aspen trees out west???)

its a little sensational, this is new England not the tropics, very very raley do we get west Nile and I can't ever remember hearing about malaria, heck even my vet told me not to worry about heart worm with my dog (mosquito transmitted) as it is so rare up here so what if there are more mosquitoe I say...

its sad but if the bats go we still have spiders and other critters that eat bugs... assuming this is a natural fungus and no human involvement, I feel for the poor bats but I do believe in letting nature take Its course, if they can't adapt then they weren't ment to be...they aren't the first to become extinct and certainly not the last....Darwinism mabey?.. ;-(

lol, some of you people, really...

I got that the OP was talking about 7million dead bats, when I read "New BAT Fungus Geomysis"... not human fungus...
And the fact, if 7million people were dead in 16 states, I think that would be all over the news.... just sayin'...

Originally posted by DaughterOfARevolver
reply to post by BiggerPicture

 

its sad but if the bats go we still have spiders and other critters that eat bugs... assuming this is a natural fungus and no human involvement, I feel for the poor bats but I do believe in letting nature take Its course, if they can't adapt then they weren't ment to be...they aren't the first to become extinct and certainly not the last....Darwinism mabey?.. ;-(

Yes. If bats are gone, the bug population may rise, but there will also then be a rise in population, of other bug eatting predators, thus brining the bug pop. down again.

Such is life, and how it works.

Originally posted by Domo1
reply to post by autopat51

 

Not all lifeforms are important. Look at bees and snakes. Useless. Also, OWSers.

Op if the disease cant live in human habitat why should we care?

Wow. You're serious, aren't you? That's terrible.

First off, bees ARE important.

No matter where you live -- in a brick Philadelphia row house, the sprawling suburbs of Dallas or an apartment in Seattle -- you depend, more than most of us know, on honeybees raised in California or Florida. The bees have been dying in unusually large numbers, and scientists are trying to figure out why. "One in every three bites of food you eat comes from a plant, or depends on a plant, that was pollinated by an insect, most likely a bee," said Dennis vanEngelsdorp of Penn State University's College of Agricultural Sciences.

Source

Second, just because the disease isn't prevalent with humans doesn't mean we shouldn't care about it. It's just like the bees.

From the OP's own source:

Bat colonies have been decimated throughout the northeastern US, and the syndrome has spread into mid-atlantic states and northward into Canada. The Forest Service estimates that the die-off from white-nose syndrome means that at least 2.4 million pounds of bugs (1.1 million kg) will go uneaten and become a financial burden to farmers. Furthermore, the disease could threaten an already endangered species, such as Indiana bats and the big-eared bat (Corynorhinus townsendii virginianus), the official state bat of Virginia.[24] Comparisons have been raised to colony collapse disorder, another poorly-understood phenomenon resulting in the abrupt disappearance of Western honey bee colonies,[10][25] and with chytridiomycosis, a fungal skin disease linked with worldwide declines in amphibian populations.

Source

Another bit to note:

White-nose syndrome (WNS) and the increased development of wind-power facilities are threatening populations of insectivorous bats in North America. Bats are voracious predators of nocturnal insects, including many crop and forest pests. We present here analyses suggesting that loss of bats in North America could lead to agricultural losses estimated at more than $3.7 billion/year. Urgent efforts are needed to educate the public and policy-makers about the ecological and economic importance of insectivorous bats and to provide practical conservation solutions.

Source


Just because you have no knowledge of the subject doesn't mean it's not important.


Anyway -- thanks to the OP. This is indeed an issue that should be paid attention to and taken seriously.

reply to post by SalientSkivvy

reply to post by SalientSkivvy

reply to post by Six6Six
All life is interconnect or symbiotic in some way. Bats for example are pollinators in a similar way to bees. North america has already lost most of it's bee population, so this latest devastation to the bat populations is not good news at all.... pollinators are disappearing at an alarming rate worldwide, why this is happening is a question of the utmost importance.

reply to post by BiggerPicture


This has been a problem with bats for a while now, so thanks for addressing it. It would be wonderful if science could figure out how to stop it, but it doesn't seem as though that's going to happen any time soon.

increased populations of biting insects

The above quote is no exaggeration. I was just in my local pet store the other day and the manager showed me an article from a vet magazine they get. The article was stating that flea and tick populations would be up 400% because of the mild winter.

It seems as though this summer is ramping up to be one of the most memorable we've had in quite some time. As an aside, if you love your furry friend(s), please get them on flea, tick, and heartworm prevention.

I have to wonder if these bat fungus cases weren't man-made.
It would certainly benefit certain companies *MONSANTO* if bats were wiped out, so they could come in and save the day with their genetic meddling.
Uncontrollable insect population? No problem! Buy our genetically-modified seeds that grow plants the insects can't eat! (Until they build up a super-resistance, of course)
I wouldn't put it past them.

Back in about 2004, there were lots of bats around places I lived in north Georgia and in north Alabama. We used to turn lights on at night to attract bugs for them, and they lived in small limestone caves around the area. Heck, as I kid I even played with the bats (weird, eh?) around the house. We used to have one of those big mercury streetlights up near the farmhouse and the bats would come to it at night to catch bugs.

You could toss up ping pong balls and they'd fly up and tap the ball. After a while you could get them knocking the thing around for a game.

When we moved to north Florida about 2004 there were bats that used to follow us when we were out running at night - we'd sweat and attract horseflies (mostly me) and the bats would zoom in and weave back and forth between us as we ran picking off the horseflies and some of the other large bugs. Then you just didn't see as many of them, and 2008-2010 I couldn't find any. This year there seems to be a big resurgence. It's still not as many as there were but it's better.

We've put up bat houses. Maybe if they have someplace to stay that's not so packed with bats they won't get the disease as readily.

reply to post by Bedlam


I didn't know they could be playful like that. I see them around and they are fun to watch. Ours live in trees but I somehow can never spot them in daytime. I don't know where they go in winter. The bat house idea sounds good but would they prefer those over caves?

Okay just messing with some figures for those that think that this doesn't matter.

7 million bats at an average of 10 grams each = 70 000 000 grams i.e. 70 metric tons.

Bats typically eat a third of their body weight EACH NIGHT in insects. That gives 23 metric tons of insect not being eaten per night. Bats can be active for up to 5 months or 150 days.

3450 tons of insects not eaten in a season. THAT'S A LOT OF BUGS.

A ton of feathers would occupy about the same space as 4 articulated trailers. Insects have a much lesser density.

Bats are near to being apex predators and are only eaten by birds of prey and reptiles etc therefore are at the point in the food chain that take many small things and make them a large thing. It would take many animal generations for this imbalance to be addressed.

Ok, so its 7 million bats that are dead...not people...damn it, I was hoping it was people. So, did some one actually count all the way to 7 million? Cause, if it was one guy, that's a pretty fast counter! So how many bats are left? How many were there to begin with??

Also, what happened to all the "bat bodies".....???? can we do some research on them? Was there a funeral? A memorial service??

I guess some questions will never be answered.......