Why is White-nose Syndrome closing all recreational caves?
In the caving community, white-nose syndrome has become something talked about more and more.
But what is White-nose syndrome?
White-nose syndrome is a disease that has been affecting bats in caves or mines and killing them in large numbers.
https://www.whitenosesyndrome.org/sites/default/files/wns_bat_small.jpg
I have been an avid caver for over ten years. Over the years I have noticed that caves that used to be recreational and open to the public are becoming closed with little to no access at all. My question is
should ALL recreational caves be closed due to White-nose syndrome?
When not going to local recreational caves I also like to explore caves in National parks like Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico and Wind Cave in South Dakota. Since 2010 I have noticed that these national parks are becoming more concerned with White-nose Syndrome. Before you are permitted to enter any national park caves you are asked if you have visited another cave. If you have then you are thoroughly screened, and everything from your shoes to clothing needs to properly be clean before you can enter. If you deny any of their procedures, you will be denied access to their cave. Is this procedure going too far?
In this blog, I am looking to explore further and answer some questions that myself and other cavers are wondering. Is White-nose Syndrome something that is spreading that quickly? What are the real dangers? I am also a mother and hope to pass down my hobby, so should we be concerned with humans encountering this disease? Are all bat species in danger? If there are bat species that are not affected by the decease should those caves be closed as well? what kind of precautions can be put in place to ensure we all have access to the recreational caves?
A good place to start looking for information on this topic will be from the National Park Service as they are genuinely concerned about White-nose syndrome when permitting visitors. The national park system is also helping support the scientist working on this issue. Two states that started the closures are Washington and Colorado. So obtaining information on their government websites should help answer the question as to why caves are closing. There are still a lot of studies finding out more information on White-nose Syndrome. I am excited to have some answers on what I can do to help reopen the caves and help the bats.
For a long time I didn’t entirely know that most recreational caves are heavily policed, but in retrospective that actually makes quite a lot of sense. Wildlife and the overall structure and integrity of such caves can be threatened by negligence and ignorance on part of any climber. As such, regarding the white-nose syndrome, I’m quite interested into how that syndrome pertains to possible environmental contamination and how the screening process for such contamination may halt or impede any climbers.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting because it is having a big effects on bat species.
ReplyDeleteI agree that people should have more precautions in order to prevent the disease from harming the bat population, since it is such a serious disease. I am curious about how the process works and what specific things the security guards have to check for. However, in some caves, the species of bat that is affected by the white nose syndrome may not be present, so I believe that the guards should be less strict with the safety precautions in those cases
This is a really interesting article, I've never been aware or knowledgeable about this disease and cant wait to read more about it. There are quite a few other documents on this topic that describe what it is and am glad your blog will offer a situation and action to change the closing down of these caves.
ReplyDeleteThis topic is somewhat interesting to me, but it’s hard for me to get engaged when I don’t know what white-noise syndrome is. I think a clear explanation is necessary in the beginning to get the reader engaged in exactly what you’re talking about. Really that’s my only feedback. There’s not much to say when I don’t really know enough about the topic to really reflect on it in the first place.
ReplyDelete