Europe's bats survive a disease that causes mass extinctions in America

Adapted for a long time: Bats in this country survive dangerous fungal disease

In recent years, the so-called white nose syndrome in North America has killed millions of bats. However, only there and not in Europe, where the pathogen of the disease, a specific fungus, also occurs. German researchers assume that the European bats have adapted to the fungus for a long time.

Mushroom caused mass extinction

In the past ten years, more than six million bats have died in their winter quarters in North America due to the so-called white nose syndrome. The trigger for the mass extinction is a fungus. Researchers from the University of Greifswald have found that the death rate in the winter quarters of European bats is very low and is not related to the fungal disease. The scientists assume that the European bats have adapted to the fungus for a long time and this was accidentally deported from Europe to North America.

In recent years, millions of bats have died of a fungus in North America, which also occurs in this country. However, European bats have long adapted to the fungus and therefore survive. (Image: Geza Farkas / fotolia.com)

Dangerous disease

As reported in a report by the Greifswald University, in the winter of 2006 bats researchers discovered peculiar white spots on the noses of bats in the Howes Cave near New York.

In the following winters, other cases were spotted in other bat quarters in the region. At the same time, the researchers found on the cave floor a high number of dead bats with white noses.

The cause of death was the fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans.

Because of the symptoms, the researchers called the disease "white-nose syndrome" (white nose syndrome).

Millions of bats died

Within ten years, the deadly disease spread across half the North American continent. Millions of bats died, and some species are extinct in some regions.

For bat populations, high death rates are a serious problem because most species get offspring only once a year.

Bats with "white noses" have also been observed in some European countries, but the effects on bats are controversial and so far barely studied.

German scientists are researching white-nose syndrome

Zoologists from the University of Greifswald have been studying white-nasal syndrome since 2009.

In the current study, they collected information on the mortality rate of European bats during hibernation and possible causes of death (geographical factors, environmental factors, fungal disease).

The research has recently been published in the journal "Mammal Review".

Accidentally misappropriated by people to North America

With the help of hundreds of bat experts, who examined a total of 318 winter quarters in 30 countries, the researchers found that bat mortality in European winter habitats is generally low and not due to fungal attack by bats.

"Based on our research, we suspect that the fungus was inadvertently trafficked by humans from Europe to North America," says Marcus Fritze, one of the study authors.

He points to studies that have already shown that the North American is genetically very similar to the European fungus, but quite different from Asian isolates.

European bats have adapted to the fungus

The scientists suspect that the European bats have adapted to the fungus over time - unlike the American bats.

"Based on our genetic studies, we assume that the white-nosed fungus has been in Europe for a very long time," says Dr. Sebastien Puechmaille from the Zoological Institute in Greifswald.

Together with colleagues and researchers from all over Europe, as well as volunteer bat and conservationists, the scientists sampled infected bats to use genomic data to find out when and from which region the fungus was taken to North America and how it came about.

The goal is to develop strategies and recommendations that will help prevent the spread of such wildlife diseases worldwide and trigger dramatic mass mortality in animal populations. (Ad)