TAKE-ACTION TOOLBOX #5: SAVE OUR BATS

A fast-moving disease is killing bats across many parts of North America, and we need your help to stop it.

White-nose syndrome has killed nearly 7million bats since it was first discovered in the United States in 2006. Biologists consider it the worst wildlife disease outbreak ever in North America. It not only threatens to drive some bats species extinct but could also have an enormous effect on the billions of dollars in pest-killing services that bats provide each year in this country.

In just a few years, the disease has spread to 19 U.S. states and four Canadian provinces. The fungus that causes white-nose syndrome has been found on bats in Oklahoma. Biologists fear it could soon spread from coast to coast, wiping out entire bat colonies and pushing some species to extinction.

But it’s not too late. The Center for Biological Diversity has filed several petitions to save bats and protect the places they live. We need your help to:

• pressure Congress to finally provide $10.8 million in research money to find the best ways to stop this disease;
• pass the Wildlife Disease Emergency Act; and
• persuade state and federal land managers to block all but the most essential human travel into caves and abandoned mines, especially those in the West, where the disease has yet to gain a foothold.

Learn more about the Save Our Bats campaign now, and use this toolbox to find out other ways to help us help save bats.