Protecting Bats from White-Nose Syndrome: What Every Cave Visitor Can Do

Bats rarely top anyone's list of cute wildlife, but they earn their keep: they protect crops, eat insects, and have even inspired superheroes. Now many of them are in trouble, because a deadly fungal disease called white-nose syndrome is spreading across North America — and ordinary visitors can help slow it.

A bat with white-nose syndrome (NPS photo).

What white-nose syndrome is

White-nose syndrome (WNS) is caused by a fungus, Pseudogymnoascus destructans, that infects bats while they hibernate over winter. The fungus damages their wings and makes them more active than normal, so they burn through the fat reserves they need to last until spring. The name comes from the white fuzz the fungus sometimes forms around a bat's nose and mouth.

The disease has killed millions of bats in North America and is still spreading. Bats with WNS have been confirmed in most U.S. states and Canadian provinces.

How it spreads

Bats pass the fungus to each other by touch, and pick it up from surfaces where they hibernate. WNS does not infect people, but people can spread it: the fungus can ride out of a cave on shoes, clothing or gear used where bats hibernate. That is why gear that has been in a site with WNS should never be brought into a site that is still free of it.

A Mexican free-tailed bat hunting insects (NPS / BT Hamilton).

Why bats matter

More than 45 species of bats live in the national parks, and different species do different jobs. Bats:

• support cave communities with their nutrient-rich guano (droppings);
• control insects — pest control worth $3.7 billion a year in the United States;
• pollinate plants;
• feed other animals as prey.

They have also inspired advances in technology, and they help bring us treats such as coffee and chocolate.

A tri-colored bat on a rock outcrop at Russell Cave National Monument (NPS photo).

What you can do

You don't need to be a caver. Anyone exploring rock crevices, caves, mines, tunnels, bridges or other places bats use can help.

1. Check before you go. Look up the affected areas on the map at whitenosesyndrome.org and follow the local rules where you're visiting. Never take clothing, footwear or equipment used in a WNS-affected area to an unaffected one — not even after it has been decontaminated.
2. Scrape it off. Before leaving, remove as much dirt and debris as you can from anything that touched the ground or walls. Bag dirty items in plastic if you can, to keep the rest of your gear and your car clean.
3. Wash it. Wash your hands, clothes, footwear and equipment promptly with hot water and soap. If you're visiting several bat sites, learn how to decontaminate your gear properly.
4. Keep your distance. Don't disturb hibernating bats and never touch one. If you do have contact with a bat — or wake up in a room with one — see a doctor as soon as possible. Fewer than 1% of wild bats have rabies, but rabies is almost always fatal and is very preventable with treatment after an exposure.

Bat Week, held during the last week of October each year, is a good time to learn more about bats and the threats they face — and to share these habits with the people you explore with.

Sources

• National Park Service: "I Didn't Know That!: Protecting Bats from White-Nose Syndrome." The source's "providences in Canada" is corrected here to provinces.