Bat Guano

Barbara French

In response to the question posted by Nancy  <nanbar@mailcity.com> on the Gardener's Forum Is Bat manure safe?

I often receive a catalog from a company called "Worm's Way," which carries only organic substances - some of them pretty exotic. Some items boast that they contain "bat ginko" which is basically bat manure, mostly from Caribbean islands like Jamaica.

Q: Although I have see many documentaries that have stated the level of concern by the general public about bats carrying rabies is very overrated, is it possible to become infected by using bat manure?

I know very little about the disease, which has everyone in my rural area doing their best to kill off as many wild rodents (raccoons, possums, muskrats, etc) as possible (of which, I object).

Any ideas?

Barbara French from Bat Conservation International responded:

The term "guano" was originally used to describe sea bird droppings. Today it is  applied to both bat and sea bird droppings.  Guano is considered by many to be a valuable soil enricher. 

It is not considered to be a source of rabies exposure.  Exposure to rabies virus commonly results from bites or from direct contact of open wounds, cuts, or abrasions with saliva or nervous tissue of an infected animal.  

Less common modes of exposure include contact of mucous membranes (e.g., eyes, nose, mouth) with infected saliva or nervous tissues and inhalation of aerosolized virus.  (Only 2 cases of aerosol transmission of bat rabies have been suspected, both in the 1950s and only within the unique atmospheric conditions resulting in caves housing large maternity colonies.) 

Such conditions are not found in caves in the northern temperate zones nor in buildings housing typical bat colonies.

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