No evidence bat disease has come to Wisconsin

There’s no evidence yet that a deadly bat disease has hit Wisconsin. The D-N-R had survey crews check out 100 hibernating spots during the winter – and they found no evidence of white-nose syndrome.

The disease causes bats to wake up during their hibernating periods – and it quickly depletes their energy. It has killed over a million bats in the U.S. and Canada in the last four years.

The state Natural Resources Board passed emergency rules last fall allowing inspections of caves-and-mines, and making cave visitors decontaminate themselves when they leave. There was also talk of giving the DNR the ability to close commercial caves if it’s necessary to stop the fungal disease – but that plan was eventually delayed.

Tags: outdoors, health