Resistance in persisting bat populations after white-nose syndrome invasion

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Publication Date

January 2017

Abstract

Increases in anthropogenic movement have led to a rise in pathogen introductions and the emergence of infectious diseases in naive host communities worldwide. We combined empirical data and mathematical models to examine changes in disease dynamics in little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) populations following the introduction of the emerging fungal pathogen Pseudogymnoascus destructans, which causes the disease white-nose syndrome. We found that infection intensity was much lower in persisting populations than in declining populations where the fungus has recently invaded. Fitted models indicate that this is most consistent with a reduction in the growth rate of the pathogen when fungal loads become high. The data are inconsistent with the evolution of tolerance or an overall reduced pathogen growth rate that might be caused by environmental factors. The existence of resistance in some persisting populations of little brown bats offers a glimmer of hope that a precipitously declining species will persist in the face of this deadly pathogen.

Keywords

Little Brown Bat, Tolerance, Myotis Lucifugus, Pseudogymnoascus Destructans, Geomyces, Host Extinction

Document Type

Article

Notes

Proceedings of the Royal Society B, Vol. 372, no. 1712 (2017-01-19).

Identifier

SFS0063014_00001

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