Reducing The Spread Of White-Nose Syndrome

June 1, 2025

The following steps can be taken to help reduce the spread of White-nose Syndrome, the most important one is to not to go into caves or mines where known bat populations exist. Second, if you are not sure if bats live in a cave or mine the best alternative is to just stay out.

White-nose Syndrome lives in caves and mines that are of a cold and damp environment. It poses no known risk to humans, but what is now known about WNS is it cannot be killed by simply washing your clothes after going into a cave or mine. With this information the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s advised cavers and researchers to curtail their caving activities, and implement decontamination procedures.

To help reduce the spread of White-nose Syndrome the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s have the following steps you can follow.

• Do not handle alive or dead bats.
• Do not enter caves or mines during the winter hibernation months. Disturbing bats during hibernation causes them to use limited fat reserves and could cause mortality in already health-compromised bats.
• For the most up-to-date cave and mine closures and decontamination procedures, visit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service White-Nose Syndrome web site: http://www.fws.gov/whitenosesyndrome
• If you have bats roosting in domestic structures, allow them to rear their pups and exit the structure at the end of the summer before closing off any entrance holes. Provide bats with a Bat House for when they return next year.

http://www.fws.gov/whitenosesyndrome/pdf/WNSconfirmedMaine_052411.pdf

Categories: Bats, Product News, White Nose Syndrome (WNS)