Bat fungus killing millions

Federal researchers say an infectious and lethal fungus sweeping through parts of the United States and Canada has killed millions more bats over the last five years than previously estimated.

The rapidly spreading fungus responsible for white-nose syndrome is now believed to have killed 5.7 million to 6.7 million bats, a count several times higher than earlier estimates, across 16 states as far west as Oklahoma.

The fungus seems to prefer the 25 species of hibernating bats. The disease has killed mostly little brown bats – one of the most common mammals in North America – which have lost an estimated 20 percent of their population in the northeastern U.S.

White-nose syndrome can be transmitted between animals through direct contact. It gets its name from the powdery, white substance that appears around muzzles, ears and wings of affected bats.