PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — For the first time, multiple bats in Oregon have been diagnosed with a deadly disease dubbed “white-nose syndrome.”
The U.S. Geological Survey’s National Wildlife Health Center diagnosed six Yuma myotis in Columbia County and a little brown myotis in Benton County with the disease earlier in March, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife revealed on Wednesday.
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Scientists have identified “Pseudogymnoascus destructans” as the fungus that causes white-nose syndrome, which often hinders hibernation and leads to dehydration and starvation for bats in the early stages of winter.
ODFW said the Oregon bats that have fallen ill due to the disease are “small insectivorous” species found across the state. They were reported to the department after they were found dead in residential areas late this winter, according to officials…