News Finding: The study provides the first description of the dynamics of fungal infection and transmission in bats, and the findings are in striking contrast to most infectious diseases, said senior author Marm Kilpatrick, associate professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz.
Paper Finding: A yearly birth pulse may be important in driving transmission if either colony size or acquired immunity is important, and would result in sharp increases in prevalence in mid-summer after females have given birth .
News Context: But the remarkably high rate of infection during hibernation leads to high mortality rates at the time of year when bat populations are naturally at their lowest, before the females give birth in the summer. The study provides the first description of the dynamics of fungal infection and transmission in bats, and the findings are in striking contrast to most infectious diseases, said senior author Marm Kilpatrick, associate professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz. "In this case, transmission is tied to hibernation and body temperature.
Paper Context: If colony size is the primary mechanism driving transmission, we predict that prevalence would increase faster in seasons when colonies are larger. A yearly birth pulse may be important in driving transmission if either colony size or acquired immunity is important, and would result in sharp increases in prevalence in mid-summer after females have given birth . If contact with an environmental reservoir drives transmission, then prevalence would be predicted to increase significantly as bats contact infected environments.