White-nose syndrome messes with bats’ metabolisms

Bats with the deadly white-nose syndrome may be burning their fat reserves too quickly to survive the winter. Researchers studying little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus) found that sick bats use twice as much fat for energy as their healthy companions during the winter months. The finding, published January 5 in BMC Physiology, provides evidence for scientists’ hypothesis that white-nose syndrome quickens the metabolisms of sick bats during hibernation.