Could a fungus cause the extinction of bats?
Could a fungus cause the extinction of bats? Something’s wrong in the bat cave. No, not Batman and Robin’s lair — we’re talking actual bat caves full of thousands of bats. You see, when winter rolls around, bats join the bears, chipmunks and other furry mammals and tuck in tight for hibernation. Hibernation conserves energy during the season when food is scarce and the weather is harsh. The birds of the night take their winter sleep in caves called hibernaculums. In the winter of 2006 in Albany, N.Y., something strange happened to hibernating bats during what should have been a dormant period. A wildlife biologist noticed that some bats were awake and flying outside of their hibernaculums during the day when
