After the SARS epidemic in 2003 and the onslaught of Covid-19, scientists are taking a closer look at ways of mitigating the risk of future global pandemics and the waves of deaths they bring.
A team of American researchers may have come up with a solution that appears both simple and unexpected, but which could nevertheless prove effective: leave bats alone.
According to them, these small mammals could still help reduce the risk of global pandemics, such as the one that started in 2020 and caused nearly seven million deaths worldwide – but only if they are not disturbed by humans.
It should be noted, however, that this is not a study, but an analysis presented by a team of experts from Cornell University and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in the United States, and published in the journal “The Lancet Planetary Health”.
The experts suggest that it is essential to stop disturbing bats, and to stop disrupting them by modifying or affecting their habitats, in order to mitigate the risk of future global pandemics.
This may sound like a strange idea, but it’s actually quite serious, if only because bats are reservoirs for a large number of viruses that can be transmitted to other species, including humans.
These include the rabies virus, Ebola, the Marburg virus, the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, and the Nipah virus, to name a few.
“In a globalised world with eight billion people, we can no longer ignore our interconnectedness with the wildlife and ecosystems around us,” said Dr Susan Lieberman from the WCS.
“We must change humanity’s relationship with nature if we want to prevent the next pandemic of zoonotic origin – and that can start with bats.”
Scientists are not pointing the finger at bats for their role in the emergence of certain pandemics, but rather at humanity, which needs to take “the most basic, common-sense upstream steps” to reduce the risk of another pandemic.
More concretely, the analysis suggests stopping the use, trade and consumption of bats, but also stopping the hunting of them, as well as leaving their natural habitats undisturbed.
The idea is to stop all activities likely to cause their dispersal and, thus, increase the risk of spreading zoonoses – diseases or infections that are transmitted from animals to humans.
“If we can stop hunting, eating, and trading bats, stay out of their caves, keep livestock away from areas where bats are concentrated… and if we can stop deforestation, degrading – and even start restoring – their natural habitats, we can indisputably lower the chances of another pandemic,” Cornell professor of wildlife health and health policy, Steven A Osofsky, concluded.
While bats are a priority, the experts also point out that this observation applies to many other wild species, which is something they will be examining further in the near future.