Although bats are critical to our ecosystem here in Toronto, they can carry a variety of disease-causing agents. Some bats carry rabies, bat bugs and even the fungus Histoplasma capsulatum in their guano. Bat bugs are very much like bed bugs, and live and feed on bats’ blood. However, they can also survive feeding off other warm-blooded mammals, such as human beings. This poses a serious health threat to us. Bats are the only mammals that can live their entire lives with rabies, and this makes them even more dangerous than others. The most alarming of the health hazards posed by bats is the H.capsulatum. This fungal matter is usually contained in bat guano or feces, and can actually become airborne to cause a respiratory disease called histoplasmosis. This is particularly dangerous to children and the elderly.