White Nose Syndrome & Wind Turbines ~ Killing Bats

White nose syndrome is becoming an epidemic.

Nationwide, white-nose syndrome has wiped out an estimated 1 million bats since it was initially seen in a New York cave in 2006. Since then, it’s been identified in 14 states and two Canadian provinces and is moving westward. Bats play a crucial role in controlling crop and forest pests, the loss of so many bats will affect our agricultural economy and forest economy.
Their appetite for bugs has major implications for agriculture not only in New York State but nationwide.
“Bats are the primary predators of nighttime insects,” including moths and beetles that damage corn and other commodity crops. With fewer bats, we have more insects, which mean it is necessary to use more pesticides.
The Indiana bat – classified by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service as endangered. Are legally protected they are not immune from white nose syndrome this disease could have a devastating effect upon the survival of this species. White nose syndrome is a fungus it attacks cave-dwelling bats while they hibernate. The fungus grows on the animals’ ears, wings and nose. It is believed that the fungus wakes them or keeps them awake. As a result, infected bats use more of their stored body fat and starve to death. Additionally to further devastate the bat population the growing popularity of wind turbines and wind farms also poses problems for bats, especially when they’re migrating.
Tree-roosting species, like the Indiana bat, are also in jeopardy when the large dead trees they roost in are removed and their habitat is disturbed in other ways, such as clearing for transmission line routes to accommodate wind turbines .
Serious threats to bats come from wind turbines and habitat destruction. When a species is eradicated from the planet it is an irreversible problem.

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After watching the injured bat rescue video below, I was thinking ~ I wonder if when the post construction bird & bat mortality monitoring carcass searches are being conducted ,if they ever find injured bats at the bases of wind turbines ? What if they find an injured Indiana Brown Bat, what is the protocol? Do they kill them? Do they ignore them because they are not dead? Or do they rescue them?
This would apply to any species ,but I am particularly curious about any endangered species that they find that are injured and not dead.
Out of all of the post construction Bird and bat mortality reports that I have read I have never read of one injured bird or bat no survivors taken ....


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The Video below ~ HOUDINI'S STORY ~
Houdini is a Leisler female bat (Nyctalus leisleri) found near a wind turbine with an external fracture on her right wing.







US FISH & WILDLIFE CURRENT White Nose Syndrome News >here