White-nose syndrome has killed over 6 million bats in North America since 2006, causing mass suffering from the fungal skin disease.
White-nose syndrome causes prolonged suffering through disrupted hibernation and gradual starvation from energy reserve depletion. Bats dying from WNS emerge in winter, search fruitlessly for food, and die from hypothermia and starvation. The scale of mortality and suffering makes WNS one of the largest wildlife welfare crises in North American history.