First mycological investigations on italian bats.

Abstract

To ascertain the occurrence of White-nose syndrome or similar mycotic diseases in Italian bats, fifteen bat carcasses (Myotis capaccini, Miniopterus schreibersii, Myotis sp., Pipistrellus sp.) found in a cave in southern Italy, two dead bats (Rhinolophus hipposideros) collected in a cave in Piedmont, and three living bats (Tadarida teniotis, Hypsugo savii and Pipistrellus nathusii) sampled in Turin (NW Italy) were analysed. Fortysix fungal strains, belonging to 15 species, were isolated in pure culture from different carcasses. Five other taxa were identified by direct microscopical analysis of small pieces of skin or hair. Since neither Geomyces destructans nor any other Geomyces species were found, we concluded that these fungi probably invaded bat hair and tissues only after the death of the animals. Trichosporum chiropterorum was reported for the first time in Italy.