White-nose syndrome

Caver photographer in 2006 February took a shot of bats some 40 miles west of Albany, New York who all had an unusual white substance on their muzzles. The photographer also noticed some dead bats. The following winter irregular behavior of the bats, bats with white noses and the dead bats in the caves all came to the attention of the New York Department of Environmental Conservation biologists.

The biologist noted that this was due to white nose syndrome and documented it on January 2007. Hundreds of thousands of hibernating birds have died. The biologist, agencies, and the organizations all over the country are still trying to find a solution to this unknown mystery.

Many have found sick and dead bats in unprecedented number in and around the caves and mines. During hibernacula the bats move to the cold parts. They fly during the day and in the cold winter weather if the prey for them is not available they start to exhibit some uncharacteristic behavior.

Despite of the research to find the source of this unknown mystery the solution remains unknown. The recent identification of the cold loving fungus could be a first step for the answer.