The abstract below was from the published abstracts from the XIV International Bat Research Conference
held in Merida, Mexico in August, 2007. Apparently the abstract
was for a poster presentation. The conference Web page is at http://batconference.confhost.net/
and there is a link there to all the abstracts. This abstract was
on page 206 (in the third abstract file on the Conference page).
There are no other references to Hicks in the Conference
abstracts.
Unusual Winter Mortality events
at four New York hibernacula during 2007
Alan C.
Hicks*(1), Nancy Heaslip(2), Robert Rudd(3), David Newman(1), Josepth
Okeniewski(2),
Douglas Fraser(4), Mark Jankowski(5), Scott Darling(6)
| (1) |
New York
State Department of Environmental Conservation, Albany, New York,
United States. *
achicks@gw.dec.state.ny.us |
| (2) |
New York
State Department of Environmental Conservation, Rotterdam, New York,
United States |
| (3) |
New York
State Department of Health, Albany, New York, United States |
| (4) |
Siena
College, Loudonville, New York, United States |
| (5) |
USGS
National Wildlife Health Center, Madison, Wisconsin, United States |
| (6) |
Vermont
Fish & Wildlife Department, Rutland, Vermont, United States |
Unusual mortality events were detected at four hibernacula in New York
between early March and late April 2007. Bat carcasses and parts of
carcasses were estimated to number in the thousands within Hailes Cave
where this years winter survey count of 7,296 live bats was 47% of the
2005 survey total. At Schoharie Cavern, 125 carcasses were found and
the survey count of 478 live bats was 36% of the 2006 total. The number
of carcass collected at Knox Cave (125) and Gages Cave (805) represent
20% and 83% respectively of the most recent winter counts. All of these
caves are within a 12 km radius in Albany and Schoharie Counties, NY.
With two exceptions that may be unrelated, there were no reported
mortality events elsewhere in NY,VT or PA. It is clear that many bats
died outside of the hibernacula, and that mortalities began no later
than early February. Winter submissions from the Albany County region
to the NYS Health Department (DOH) of Myotis spp. were 10 times higher
than mean submission rates over the last decade. Anecdotally, the
number of observations reported by the public of bats flying in a wide
variety of winter conditions were the highest in the experience of
Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and DOH staff. Carcasses
collected both inside and outside of Hailes Cave were emaciated,
although necropsy results by pathology units at DEC and USGS are not
yet completed. Many carcasses at Hailes and Schoharie had been predated
or scavenged. We do not yet know the exact species composition of the
kills, or the cause or causes of these mortalities, and investigations
are continuing. We will discuss potential explanations including
disease, and the possible relationship to record warm temperatures that
occurred during the early winter.
-- end of abstract --
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