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

So many choices on what is going to kill me, what a splendid way to go, let me count the ways. Opening another case wine and waiting for the end to come.

yeah it's so sad if all our north american bats are dropping like flies and going extinct.

i hate biting insects!

at least the more southern species will survive. this fungus thrives and kills especially cuz of lower temps. theres only so many caves in the north that programs can heat..

Originally posted by Domo1
reply to post by autopat51

 

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

Going to simply assume this is sarcasm overall.

But for anyone whom doesn't know, the honey bee is perhaps the most important insect on earth, without it, we would lose a massive amount of foods (pollination and such wouldn't happen). There would be massive shortages of food globally and many would simply die...thats just a direct immediate result effecting humans..nevermind the catastrophic effect overall...and it would be an endless profound change to our species and way of life.

So ya, pretty sure this was sarcasm considering its the one insect that clearly is critical to our existence and prosperity.

I too have followed this story for a while. I live in upstate NY so we hear a bit about the stories as some research has been done locally. Now I have heard a few years back they had some progress towards treating it. Link I have heard some reports that the fungus was introduced by European cavers not cleaning their gear and bringing foreign fungus to US cave systems. It may not be some nefarious plot just pure human carelessness.

Originally posted by dug88
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.

edit on 26-3-2012 by dug88 because: grammar

Hi,

Wow! Thanks for the info that heating the caves is being attempted. Sad to hear that the results -so far- have been negligible. This all really is heartbreaking. Frogs and toads also at risk of the disease too! I emailed a scientist researching a cure --with the idea of crop spraying the area with Jim Humbles MMS-- he said that a student did come up with the idea previously and if it were to be attempted they would obviously need to experiment with the correct dilution so as not to kill the frogs in the process.

Link to Wiki

Most extinctions have occurred naturally, prior to Homo sapiens walking on Earth: it is estimated that 99.9% of all species that have ever existed are now extinct.

Even if we were not on this planet, Species would be going extinct all the time. That's just the way it is and how it works.

To constantly blame everything on Humans as some do is ridiculous. I'm always amazed when I see it in a case like this. It must be scary to think people are out to destroy the earth all the time, instead of living life. To me this says that there is a lot of paranoid delusions out there.

Even in my tiny realm of Peers, I have one friend who thinks somebody or something new every day is out to get him or destroy the Earth. Almost killed him when he decided the doctors were trying to kill him. Luckily he woke up in time and they saved him. Nice guy and I'd hate to see him dead over some bizarre phobia that people are out to get him.

Some things in nature are beyond our control, but it seems like when one animal leaves us, another quickly fills it's niche. Be nice to those Spiders, they are our friends. Go ahead and kill all the gnats and mosquitoes you want though. Smash them puppy's.

Originally posted by BiggerPicture
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?

no that's a scary thought indeed. add that to the resistant strains of MRSA and you have the tools needed to make life extremely difficult for us all.

i sure hope they can fix this mess because without our bats, the bugs will surely spread disease at an alarming rate never before seen.

nice avatar!

reminder where would the bald eagle be if we didnt compensate some for our widespread DDT poisoning?

yes all species eventually go extinct, homo sapiens included.

and the sooner homo sapiens go extinct, finally the slower the acceleration of extinction that we caused:

What about Batman? Will he survive?

reply to post by BiggerPicture


I have a small colony of little micro-bats living in the walls of my old house..

They are just so cute..lol

I accidently "almost swatted one once", when it came in through a crack and started fluttering around the place, I thaught it was a large moth...

Would be sad to see these beutiful creatures dissappear for ever.

Still the bat popultions here in AU are still pretty stable, lets hope it stays that way for a while longer. Quarantine proceedures need to be stepped up here, though migratory birds will still bring it here in time.

Although since our bees are ammune to the fungal disease that is killing off other bees around the world, one would hope that Aussie bats might have similar ammunities. Wishful thinking on my behalf, but one can hope..

Originally posted by Kenan2
What about Batman? Will he survive?

Well considering there's been like five or six different Batman's on TV and in Movies, I'd say he has the odds in favour of atleast one of them surviving..

Can I just add that this is a damn shame BUT being a conspiracy site can I also add that with all the supposed underground construction going on - this seems like an awfully good excuse to seal the caves and I guess many underground caverns off from prying eyes !!

just sayin...

reply to post by BiggerPicture


S&F& for importance.

Also see loam's old thread: Mystery Disease Forcing Bats to Extinction: White Nose Syndrome (WNS)

It's simply time to inoculate the bat populations some way. Bats are as important to the health of nature as are bees, the method the only difference. Without bats, the insect populations could become uncontrolable.

reply to post by Domo1


That is a very ignorant statement. Bees and snakes ARE helpful. Ever heard of pollination and rodent control? Deny ignorance.

Very misleading, sensationalist and fear-mongering title. Also, according to your link,

Only 5.5 MILLION, not 7 MILLION, have been killed. So I agree with everyone else that suggests a title change.

Originally posted by StopFearMongering
Only 5.5 MILLION, not 7 MILLION, have been killed. So I agree with everyone else that suggests a title change.

You must be kidding me..

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.

I hate misleading and hysterical headlines for threads.

I can watch the prefabricated news or read a newspaper if that's what I wanted from ATS.

I my be alone on this one, but no star or flag for you because of your misleading hyperbole.

Originally posted by SaturnFX

Originally posted by Domo1
reply to post by autopat51

 

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

Going to simply assume this is sarcasm overall.

But for anyone whom doesn't know, the honey bee is perhaps the most important insect on earth, without it, we would lose a massive amount of foods (pollination and such wouldn't happen). There would be massive shortages of food globally and many would simply die...thats just a direct immediate result effecting humans..nevermind the catastrophic effect overall...and it would be an endless profound change to our species and way of life.

So ya, pretty sure this was sarcasm considering its the one insect that clearly is critical to our existence and prosperity.

We could always eat "pink slime" in that case.

Now that was sarcasm.

Or Soylent Green if necessary.

reply to post by Domo1


bees pollinate fruits, grains , they are very imprtant
snakes eat lots of rodents
bats are natures insect swatter , they eat tons of insects

Bats, Bees, snakes, whatever are all part of helping our balance of living and most know this. Heck I hate spiders (really an understatement) but will not kill them for my reason alone (unless they are in my bed or bathroom) I know they help with other undesirables. Still, this really bothers me when insects, birds, bats and fish are dying and so many say so what. Most people hate insects and will do anything to poison the crap out of their land to get rid of them but do not realize the harm and imbalance this causes. This is one reason I got chickens 3 years ago. They are my grasshopper ninjas.

But back on track this should be a warning to us all that something is not right or just out of balance. Who knows the real reason for all this sickness. It could be localized like your neighbor spraying insecticides or who knows what. Cell phones or even wifi interference or the increasing dominance of genetically engineered foods. All of these are very unnatural and I feel pose more of a risk than global warming or cooling or even solar flares! To some extent most can adapt to a small climate change but we have been pounding our space with all kinds of crazy crap lately.

I live close to alot of bat caves so this bothers me. I love sitting out in the warm evenings and listening to them hunt and usually hear them by now but have not noticed any so far this year. It may be a little early but we do have plenty of moths and gnats at night right now for them to hunt. Not all is right. This is all I am saying.

I say this because I noticed to today playing outside with my 3 year old son more flies then ever. There is no nasty smell in the air nothing to warrant such an onslaught but they were still all over my lawn. I have a dog and chickens and have so for years. We always pick up after them and yet I have never seen the equal to what I saw today in the 10 years I have lived here.

We have also noticed the lack of bees a short time after every Spring for the last two years. We have to self pollinate much of our garden and we live way on the edge of town surround by farm land and fields.

Something is not right!