Reed: RI Could Be Key to Solving Bat Mystery

Press Release

A mysterious disease known as white-nose syndrome (WNS) is decimating the population of once common species of bats in the eastern United States and the federal government is teaming up with leading researchers in Rhode Island to search for solutions to help save the native bat population from extinction.

Rhode Island has good reason to be concerned about protecting its bat population because bats are critical to controlling mosquitos, as well as insects that eat or damage forests and local crops. By eating metric tons of these bugs, these little bats have an outsized impact on our agricultural economy. According to the U.S. Forest Service, bats have an estimated value of $23 billion annually to the agricultural industry

This week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is awarding nearly $1 million in federal grants to 35 states across the nation to address the spread of the deadly white-nose syndrome in bats. U.S. Senator Jack Reed, a member of the Appropriations subcommittee that oversees FWS funding, today announced that Rhode Island is being awarded a $21,751 grant from this program. The Department of Environmental Management (DEM) and wildlife officials will use the federal funds to conduct acoustic monitoring and can share their data as part of a national bat population monitoring program.

And earlier this spring, the National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded a $500,000 grant to researchers at Brown University for a project entitled "Characterization of the Secretome of P. Destructans, the Causative Agent of White-Nose Syndrome in Bats," under the direction of Richard Bennett. This study may help build on a new discovery made by a team from Brown University and the University of California--San Francisco that found the likely way that WNS breaks down tissue in bats, opening the door to potential treatments that could ultimately protect bats from further WNS destruction.

"Bats are a natural pest control service and provide important benefits for our ecosystems and the economy. A healthy bat population means a healthier environment. I am pleased Rhode Island is receiving additional funding to continue studying and monitoring our bat population and that federal resources are supporting important discoveries at Brown University. I am cautiously optimistic that if the federal government continues to partner with the private sector, researchers, and state wildlife officials, we can effectively respond to this disease and help the native bat population survive," said Reed.

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