Big Brown BatIMAGE: FURRYSCALYMAN VIA FLICKR
In at least one bat species, hibernation keeps the rabies virus at bay, according to a new mathematical model published Monday (June 6) in PNAS. Their annual winter slumber allows the big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) to survive till the warmer months, when the sick animals can infect a new crop of baby bats.
“What’s really exciting is that it ties the seasonal behaviors of these animals to how they interact with the disease and how their populations persist in the presence of the disease,” said Paul Cryan, a research biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey who was not involved with the study.
Scientists had previously modeled how rabies infects animals that don’t hibernate, such as skunks or raccoons. But those models couldn’t capture the ...
