Wound healing in wing membranes of the Egyptian fruit bat (Rousettus aegyptiacus) and big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus)

Greville, Lucas J.; Ceballos-Vasquez, Alejandra; Valdizón-Rodríguez, Roberto; Caldwell, John R.; Faure, Paul

doi:10.1093/jmammal/gyy050

Cited by 11 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…Consistent with our predictions based on field data (Fuller et al, 2011), captive bats in our study recovered to a normal state quickly after hibernation, and most signs of disease, except wing damage, were gone within 2 weeks. Skin structure and body condition recovered over a time scale after hibernation consistent with other studies of healing from WNS or other injuries in free-ranging and captive bats (Faure et al, 2009;Weaver et al, 2009;Fuller et al, 2011;Meteyer et al, 2011;Ceballos-Vasquez et al, 2015;Pollock et al, 2015;Greville et al, 2018;Khayat et al, 2019;Davis and Doster, 1972). Following pathogen clearance, tissue damage caused by both the pathogen and inflammatory reactions (Meteyer et al, 2011(Meteyer et al, , 2012 started to heal, and within 30 days of the start of our study, tissue damage was almost undetectable.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

Disease recovery in bats affected by white-nose syndrome

Fuller

McGuire

Pannkuk

et al. 2020

Journal of Experimental Biology

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Processes associated with recovery of survivors are understudied components of wildlife infectious diseases. White-nose syndrome (WNS) in bats provides an opportunity to study recovery of disease survivors, understand implications of recovery for individual energetics, and assess the role of survivors in pathogen transmission. We documented temporal patterns of recovery from WNS in little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus) following hibernation to test the hypotheses that: (1) recovery of wing structure from WNS matches a rapid time scale (i.e. approximately 30 days) suggested by data from free-ranging bats; (2) torpor expression plays a role in recovery; (3) wing physiological function returns to normal alongside structural recovery; and (4) pathogen loads decline quickly during recovery. We collected naturally infected bats at the end of hibernation, brought them into captivity, and quantified recovery over 40 days by monitoring body mass, wing damage, thermoregulation, histopathology of wing biopsies, skin surface lipids and fungal load. Most metrics returned to normal within 30 days, although wing damage was still detectable at the end of the study. Torpor expression declined overall throughout the study, but bats expressed relatively shallow torpor boutswith a plateau in minimum skin temperatureduring intensive healing between approximately days 8 and 15. Pathogen loads were nearly undetectable after the first week of the study, but some bats were still detectably infected at day 40. Our results suggest that healing bats face a severe energetic imbalance during early recovery from direct costs of healing and reduced foraging efficiency. Management of WNS should not rely solely on actions during winter, but should also aim to support energy balance of recovering bats during spring and summer.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

Disease recovery in bats affected by white-nose syndrome

Fuller

McGuire

Pannkuk

et al. 2020

Journal of Experimental Biology

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“…Greville et al (2018) found that in the Egyptian fruit bat ( Rousettus aegyptiacus ) wounds took about 1.5 days longer to heal to 50% wound closure in section P, compared to the chiropatagium (sections CI and CII), although this was not found in the big brown bat ( E. fuscus ). They suggest that not just blood vessels, but also collagen and elastin fibers are likely to play a role in healing.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

“…They suggest that not just blood vessels, but also collagen and elastin fibers are likely to play a role in healing. Indeed, Greville et al (2018) suggest that over-stretching of the collagen or elastin fibers during healing can cause the tear to enlarge before healing. This phenomenon also was observed in tail and wing membranes by Pollock et al (2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Rehabilitation in captivity can also result in increased stress (Moorhouse et al 2007); therefore, the tear and resulting rehabilitation can significantly affect animal health and welfare (Molony et al 2007; Kelly et al 2008). Even though several studies have investigated wing tears in bats (Davis 1968; Powers et al 2013; Voigt 2013; Greville et al 2018), there is little characterization of their form (position, orientation, size) and what causes them, although collisions (Davis 1968), fungal infections (Reichard and Kunz 2009; Cryan et al 2010; Fuller et al 2011), and predator attacks (Speakman 1991; Woods et al 2003; Ancillotto et al 2013; Loss et al 2013) are all likely.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Characterizing wing tears in common pipistrelles (Pipistrellus pipistrellus): investigating tear distribution, wing strength, and possible causes

Khayat

Shaw

Dougill

et al. 2019

Journal of Mammalogy

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Bats have large, thin wings that are particularly susceptible to tearing. Anatomical specializations, such as fiber reinforcement, strengthen the wing and increase its resistance to puncture, and an extensive vasculature system across the wing also promotes healing. We investigated whether tear positioning is associated with anatomy in common pipistrelles (Pipistrellus pipistrellus). Wing anatomy was described using histological techniques, imaging, and material testing. Tear information, including type, position, time in rehabilitation, and possible causes, was collected from rehabilitators of injured bats across the United Kingdom. Results suggest that the position of the plagiopatagium (the most proximal wing section to the body), rather than its anatomy, influenced the number, location, and orientation of wing tears. While material testing did not identify the plagiopatagium as being significantly weaker than the chiropatagium (the more distal sections of the wing), the plagiopatagium tended to have the most tears. The position of the tears, close to the body and toward the trailing edge, suggests that they are caused by predator attacks, such as from a cat (Felis catus), rather than collisions. Consistent with this, 38% of P. pipistrellus individuals had confirmed wing tears caused by cats, with an additional 38% identified by rehabilitators as due to suspected cat attacks. The plagiopatagium had the lowest number of blood vessels and highest amounts of elastin fibers, suggesting that healing may take longer in this section. Further investigations into the causes of tears, and their effect on flight capabilities, will help to improve bat rehabilitation.

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“…Great care was taken during capturing, handling and sampling of bats to minimize stress and disturbance. The wound after this biopsy from wing membrane was fully closed and healed after 14 days [71]. Tagging of bats had no impact on movement of animals, or any other costs.…”

Section: Ethical Statementmentioning

confidence: 98%

Spatial networks differ when food supply changes: Foraging strategy of Egyptian fruit bats

et al. 2020

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Animals are faced with a range of ecological constraints that shape their behavioural decisions. Habitat features that affect resource abundance will also have an impact, especially as regards spatial distribution, which will in turn affect associations between the animals. Here we utilised a network approach, using spatial and genetic data, to describe patterns in use of space (foraging sites) by free-ranging Egyptian fruit bats (Rousettus aegyptiacus) at the Dakhla Oasis in Egypt. We observed a decrease in home range size during spring, when food availability was lowest, which was reflected by differences in space sharing networks. Our data showed that when food was abundant, space sharing networks were less connected and more related individuals shared more foraging sites. In comparison, when food was scarce the bats had few possibilities to decide where and with whom to forage. Overall, both networks had high mean degree, suggesting communal knowledge of predictable food distribution.

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Wound healing in wing membranes of the Egyptian fruit bat (Rousettus aegyptiacus) and big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus)

Cited by 11 publications

References 32 publications

Disease recovery in bats affected by white-nose syndrome

Disease recovery in bats affected by white-nose syndrome

Characterizing wing tears in common pipistrelles (Pipistrellus pipistrellus): investigating tear distribution, wing strength, and possible causes

Spatial networks differ when food supply changes: Foraging strategy of Egyptian fruit bats

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