Thread by @RicardoNature

COVID19 is certainly impacting #conservation at large, but its effects on 🦇 conservation, is likely to be particularly acute.

In a world where #bats & humans are increasingly connected is key that stakeholders come together to better understand & frame bat-related health risks.

https://twitter.com/AnimalConserv/status/1301199128999976960

In this letter, co-authored by diverse range of conservations & virologists, we present a research agenda of key collaborative research areas that warrant further development if we are to provide society with a comprehensive & unbiased understanding of our coexistence with #bats.

Although priority areas to resolve the intricacies associated with bat conservation & zoonotic disease risk are context‐specific, we consider that there is a clear need to prioritise & invest resources into holistic, in‐depth applied research & collaboration, on the following:

1. characterization of bat‐pathogen ecology & evolution (e.g. elifesciences.org/articles/48401 by @caraebrook et al), including further work on host distribution and pathogen transmission dynamics, pathogenesis and immunology of bat infections, and pathogen & host community interactions;

ii. bat harvesting (link.springer.com/chapter/10.100…) & guano extraction (e.g. researchgate.net/profile/Krizle… & doi.org/10.1017/S00306…),

iii. cohabitation/coexistence between synanthropic bats and humans (e.g. doi.org/10.4404/hystri…),

iv. interactions between bats & other species that may act as intermediate hosts, including domestic (e.g. doi.org/10.1002/ece3.6…) & wild animals (nature.com/articles/nm.39…),

v. risk of pathogen transmission to bats from humans or other species (doi.org/10.1371/journa…);

3. investigation of the human dimensions of bat conservation (link.springer.com/chapter/10.100…). Conservation psychology will play a key role in changing behaviours associated with spill‐over risks & in building support for conservation. Priorities for promoting behaviour change include:

i. assessment of drivers of human behaviours towards bats with a focus on conservation & strategies to reduce zoonotic spill‐over risk,

ii. identification of human‐bat conflicts & assessment of evidence‐based and ethically acceptable interventions to reduce such conflicts

iii. quantification of known and potential ecosystem services provided by bats, including those linked to human health and well‐being (e.g. consumption of disease‐carrying mosquitoes & suppression of agricultural pests; doi.org/10.1016/j.agee…),

iv. development of context‐specific guidelines for communicating about bat‐borne zoonoses and conservation that deliver accurate information and practical recommendations, caution against persecution of bats and promote public health (doi.org/10.1016/j.bioc…);

4. investment and increased interaction between bat conservation networks (e.g. @GlobalBatNet) & One Health initiatives (e.g. @NA_bats, @EcoHealthNYC & bohrn.net) to advance conservation efforts through holistic and ethical research (link.springer.com/chapter/10.100…)

This list is not exhaustive, but in our view, it represents high‐priority collaborative research areas that warrant further development if we are to better articulate how bat conservation is part of global conservation solutions and valued by an increasingly risk‐averse society.

In a world where bats and humans are increasingly connected, we must work together to better understand and frame bat‐related health risks.

Only by doing so will we be able to coexist with bats and safeguard the many life‐enhancing services this diverse group provides :)