By catching bats, these ‘virus hunters’ hope to stop the next pandemic | The broader picture

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Researchers wearing headlamps and protective suits rush to untangle the claws and wings of bats caught in a large net in the dark in the Philippine province of Laguna.

The small animals are carefully placed in cloth bags for transport, measurement and cleaning, with details recorded and saliva and feces collected for analysis before being returned to the wild.

Laguna, Philippines. Reuters / Eloisa Lopez

“While continuing to interact closely with wildlife, we deliberately expose ourselves to disease and danger. If we can’t stop this, we might as well develop control measures to at least mitigate the consequences of possible future outbreaks. That is why this research is important. By having basic data on the nature and occurrence of the potentially zoonotic virus in bats, we can somehow predict possible outbreaks and develop appropriate, sound and scientifically-based health protocols, ” Bat said. ecologist Kirk Taray.

In addition to lab work, the research requires long excursions, hours through dense rainforest and precarious night walks on mountains covered with rocks, tree roots, mud and moss.

The group also focuses on bat enclosures in buildings, setting up fog nets before dusk to catch bats and take samples by the light of torches.

Laguna, Philippines. Reuters / Eloisa Lopez

Alviola is holding a bat captured on Makiling Mountain.

Each bat is held by the head as researchers insert small cotton swabs into their mouths and measure wingspan with plastic rulers to try to see which of the more than 1,300 species and 20 bat families are most susceptible to infection and why.

Researchers wear protective suits, masks and gloves when they come into contact with the bats, as a precaution against catching viruses.

Laguna, Philippines. Reuters / Eloisa Lopez

“I get to teach students and stay a student myself. It’s fun. Even being in the field 24 hours is better than being in the office from eight to five,” said Cosico.

“It’s really scary these days,” said Edison Cosico, who assists Alviola. ‘You never know if the bat is already a carrier.

“What we’re looking for is to find out if there are more bat viruses that can be passed on to humans. We’ll never know if the next one is like COVID.”

Most of the captive horseshoe bats are known to harbor coronaviruses, including the most famous relative of the novel coronavirus.

Laguna, Philippines. Reuters / Eloisa Lopez

“With the ongoing pandemic, more caution has been shown when studying bats. Several measures and protocols have been put in place to protect both the researchers and the bats. Community quarantine and travel restrictions have also created problems, especially in access to potential areas of study, ”said Taray.

Human exposure and closer interaction with wildlife meant that the risk of disease transmission was now greater than ever, said bat ecologist Kirk Taray.

“By having basic data on the nature and occurrence of the potentially zoonotic virus in bats, we can somehow predict possible outbreaks.”

PHOTO EDITING MARIKA KOCHIASHVILI; WRITE MARTIN PETTY, EDIT KARISHMA SINGH; LAY-OUT JULIA DALRYMPLE

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