The BC Community Bat Program is asking the public for reports of dead bats and daytime bat activity in an effort to detect white-nose syndrome, a fatal disease, caused by a fungus, that has killed millions of bats. BC bats are essential to our ecosystems and provide substantial economic benefits by helping control agricultural, forest, and urban insect pests including mosquitoes.
White-nose syndrome was detected in New York in 2006 and continues to spread westward. “The disease has been found in bats in Washington and Alberta, and the fungus was found in a guano sample in the Boundary region. However, we have yet to see bats with evidence of the disease in BC, which often appears several years after the fungus moves in,” says Paula Rodriguez de la Vega, Provincial Coordinator for the BC Community Bat Program. White-nose syndrome does not cause illness in humans or pets.
All live bats should be left alone — keep your distance, snap a photo and report it. Never touch a bat with bare hands. Contact the BC Community Bat Program for further directions on how to collect dead bats.
In partnership with the BC Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship, the BC Community Bat Program provides information on bats and promotes local stewardship and citizen science. The program runs thanks to funding from the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation, Environment and Climate Change Canada, BC government, BC Conservation Foundation, and regionally with the support of numerous businesses, organizations, and volunteers.
Contact:
BC Community Bat Program
Toll free line. 1-855-922-2287 ext. 20
Email: info@bcbats.ca
Website: /contact-us/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bcbats
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gotbats/