How WNS spreads

17 Jun How WNS spreads

Something interesting that I learned in my internship is that there are multiple ways we can identify white nose syndrome in bats. We can DNA test there guano to see if they carry the disease. We can also see the disease under a UV light because it glows a different color than normal wing damage.

With this information, we believe the movement of white nose syndrome happens when bats mate in the early fall.

When mating occurs, a high number of bats all come together and return to their original colony. They then split males going to higher elevation while females goes to lower elevation for the winter to hibernate. This is where the WNS began to grow on the bats because of the cold environment of the cave or snags they are living in. However, there are other areas where WNS can spread from bat to bat.