What Threats Do Bats Face?
Bats face a number of threats, including climate change, habitat loss, and disease.
Changing climate conditions may increase the severity and frequency of extreme weather events, which in turn impact bats’ ability to fly, hunt, migrate, or hibernate safely. As global temperatures change, regions that formerly provided hospitable places for bats to undergo their winter hibernation may begin to shift.
Habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation can occur as human expansion and development encroach on the habitat that bats rely upon. Diseases, like white-nose syndrome, have been blamed for millions of bat deaths worldwide. At some sites, fatality rates of up to 90-100% have been reported.
Learn more about threats to bats here: Threats to Bats
White-Nose Syndrome (WNS):
Nationwide, concern about bats has grown due to white-nose syndrome (WNS). WNS is a disease that is often fatal in bats. Pseudogymnoascus destructans (Pd), the fungus that causes WNS, can spread rapidly, primarily through bat-to-bat contact. WNS does not cause illness in humans, but humans are able to spread the fungus to new places.
Park staff have confirmed the presence of WNS in three bats at Rocky Mountain National Park; two bats on the west side and one bat on the east side of the park. All three bats were long-legged bats (Myotis volans). With these new findings, WNS has now been detected on both sides of the continental divide in Rocky Mountain National Park. This is the first documented case of WNS in Grand County, Colorado.
Pd infection can be most readily observed by the fuzzy white growth this fungus causes on infected bats’ faces and wings. In the early stages of infection, Pd cannot be detected through observation alone.
WNS disrupts the hibernation cycle of affected bats, resulting in starvation, freezing, and death when bats come out of hibernation before normal life-sustaining environmental conditions are met.
WNS has been blamed for millions of bat deaths nationwide since its initial detection in New York State in 2006. The westward spread of this disease has brought WNS uncomfortably close to home. Laboratory tests conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have confirmed that Pd has been positively detected in bats found in the Holzwarth Historic Site area located on the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park. This is the first confirmed detection of Pd in Grand County, Colorado.
In July 2022, the first confirmed case of WNS was reported in Southeastern Colorado. Pd and WNS have also been confirmed in Larimer County, Colorado.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the USGS, along with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service, have been conducting WNS surveys for over a decade, monitoring bats for presence of Pd. Rocky Mountain Conservancy has assisted Rocky Mountain National Park with funding for monitoring and education.
Colorado is home to 19 native bat species, at least 13 of which may be susceptible to this disease. Colorado's native bats are all insect eaters and use various habitat types across the state. They are most active during the summer months and spend the winter either hibernating in underground roosts throughout the state or migrating south. The National Park Service and other state and federal agencies will continue to monitor bats throughout Colorado. To learn more, visit the NPS "What is White-Nose Syndrome" webpage.
How Can Park Visitors Help Bats?
To protect yourselves and conserve bat populations, we recommend visitors:
- Report dead/injured bats to park personnel. To protect yourself and bats, never touch or pick up a bat. Although WNS does not cause illness in humans, a small percentage of bats can be infected with other dangerous diseases, such as rabies.
- Decontaminate. Ensure you properly decontaminate your gear and outerwear after visiting a cave or other bat habitat.
To learn more about WNS and how it impacts bats, visit https://www.whitenosesyndrome.org/