Forest Service Will Close Caves in Rocky Mountain Region to Protect Bats From Lethal Disease

RICHMOND, Vt.— More than six months after the Center for Biological Diversity filed a petition to close all federally managed bat caves in the lower 48 states, the U.S. Forest Service has indicated it intends to close caves on federal forests and grasslands in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska and most of Wyoming and South Dakota. A devastating bat-killing disease known as white-nose syndrome has spread rapidly from its original epicenter in upstate New York four years ago. The Center has demanded that more proactive steps be taken to protect bats, which are dying by the millions in the eastern half of the country.

The closures would limit human access to the caves in hopes of stemming the spread of the disease, which scientists believe can be transported from cave to cave on clothing, boots, caving gear and other equipment.