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Histoplasma capsulatum was recovered from the liver and spleen tissues of a species of predominantly insectivorous bats as well as from soil collected in a man-made harborage at Madden Air Field in the Republic of Panama.Although the recovery of the fungus Histoplasma capsulatum from soils enriched with bat or bird guano has been documented (1), successful attempts to recover it from the tissues of bats have not been reported. More than 100 bats were collected from a building adjacent to the air strip of the now-abandoned Madden Air Field, Republic of Panama. Within the building, the roosting habits of the bats were such that the guano collected could be related to the predominant bat using that particular roost. Three species of bats were recovered, Chilonycterus rubiginosa fusca, Carollia perspiculata azteca, and Phyllostomus hastatus panamensis. The latter species, an omnivore, was not examined for the presence of Histoplasma capsulatum. In addition to the bats and guano collected within the building, soil samples were taken at the entrance, under the eaves, and at the rear of the building. Thirty Chilonycterus rubiginosa fusca were killed in groups of five; livers and spleens were pooled and made into a homogeneous suspension with the aid of sterile sand, mortar, and pestle. The supernatant from this suspension was then inoculated onto two bloodfortified mycosel (2) plates and into each of five mice (0.2 ml intraperitoneally). Forty-five Carollia perspiculata azteca were processed in similar fashion, after a holding period of 22 days at the Corozal Veterinary Quarantine Station. Thus a total of six pools of Chilonycterus and nine pools of Carollia liver-and-spleen suspensions were sampled for the presence of Histoplasma capsulatum. None of the plates inoculated directly with the suspensions of liver and spleen revealed the presence of H. capsulatum. In addition, none of the mice inoculated with the tissues of Carollia perspiculata azteca yielded Histoplasma capsulatum when killed at varying times after inoculation. In contrast, two of the Chilonycterus pools (A445 and A447) yielded positive cultures. The Abstract. Histoplasma capsulatum was

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