11/13/2023 0 Comments Do bats hibernate in colorado![]() agriculture by $3.7 billion a year by eating crop-destroying insects, such as larvae-laying moths, whose offspring bore into corn plants. Geological Survey estimates that bats boost U.S. Last month, a report by the North American Bat Conservation Alliance found that 81 of the 154 known bat species in the United States, Canada and Mexico are at severe risk from white nose infection, climate change and habitat loss. Named for the white, fuzzy spots it produces on noses and other bat body parts, the fungus has killed 90 percent or more of the bat populations in parts of North America. The fungus that causes white nose syndrome is believed to have been brought to North America from Europe, where bats are apparently accustomed to it. It’s unclear how far the numbers dropped after the fungus set in, but biologists who visited in 2009 or 2010 noted the ground in front of the cave was carpeted with dead bats. Their numbers have dwindled from an estimated winter population of 300,000 to 350,000 or more in the 1960s, the last time the location was surveyed before white nose syndrome infiltrated. Scientists now estimate that between 70,000 and 90,000 bats hibernate in the Dorset cave, the largest concentration in New England. And while they can live into their teens or 20s, only 60 percent to 70 percent of pups make it beyond their first 12 months, Bennett said. Little brown bat females birth only one pup a year. “We’re hoping that it’s a source population for them to recover,” Bennett said as critters flitted and swooped around her. She has studied bats and white nose syndrome for more than a decade. “That’s really significant, because it seems to be a stronghold where these bats are mostly surviving and then spreading out throughout New England in the summer,” said Alyssa Bennett, a small mammal biologist for the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife. Their health hints that at least some species are adapting to the fungus that has killed millions of their brethren across North America. Smaller than a mouse and about the weight of three pennies in the hand, the Dorset bats skitter across the cave walls or cling to one another for warmth. They die of exposure or starvation because the insect population is too sparse to support them that time of year. ![]() The fungus wakes bats from hibernation, sending them into the frigid, winter air in search of food. White nose syndrome is caused by an invasive fungus first found in an upstate New York cave in 2006, a short bat flight from the Dorset colony. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |