Staff Blog
The Great Pennsylvania Bat Scare
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“You tend to gravitate toward an animal for one reason or another,†Flandreau says. She cites shyness, deft acuity and having wings for hands as endearing bat qualities.
In the summer of 2004, Flandreau attended “bat boot camp†in Mineral Wells, TX, rehabilitating bats and fraternizing with fellow bat-fans. She vehemently dismisses popular fear-based misconceptions involving Hollywood and vampires.
Today, in Pennsylvania, bats are dropping like flies. White-nose syndrome, a contagious fungal disease that infects certain bat species, is spreading through the northeast. The Pennsylvania Game Commission in early June ordered for all bats collected by wildlife rescuers (and everyday exterminators) to be euthanized — even those not in contact with people.
Because she’s a volunteer, Flandreau has elected herself as a spokesman of sorts for disgruntled rehabbers, or animal rehabilitators.
“Rehabbers are tippy-toeing around this because disagreeing with the Game Commission has potential repercussions,†she says. “That’s why I stepped forward.â€Flandreau believes the Game Commission’s edict makes no sense. She says the disease affects five of the nine bat subspecies in Pennsylvania, and that the casualty count could be lowered. She sent a petition to Gov. Rendell’s office about the issue.
Jerry Feaser, spokesman for the Game Commission, says the protesters’ aren’t appreciating the danger of the disease.
“The risk of having a rehabber deal with a bat and releasing it into the wild could be devastating and foolish,†Feaser says. “The spores related to fungus associated with white-nose syndrome are exceedingly difficult to kill.â€
Greg Turner, the Commission’s bat biologist, adds that there are signs that the remaining subspecies could be affected by the disease — the testing process is not an error-proof system. He predicts the death of millions of bats by next winter excluding those euthanized.
Flandreau’s petition, which has been taken under careful consideration by Pa. State Representative Cherelle L. Parker, calls for government-funded research into the disease, and for rehab clinics to be allowed to shelter the winged creatures.
“Scientists, who are usually so dry and technical, are saying things like ‘The sky is falling,’†Flandreau says. “Bats are disturbed, orphaned or injured as always, and we have to tell the public, ‘Sorry, we can’t take them.’â€
Not for nothing, but if a bat somehow finds its way into your low-ceilinged apartment and your wife is 8 months pregnant, a tennis (in our case, squash) racquet is the only solution when the little guy refuses to leave through the open windows. But it was the exterminator we finally called–not me or the neighbors upstairs–that took it upon himself to dispose of the bat in this manner, even though the website touted “humane removal.”