24 August 2012: Citing increasing concern about bats’ potential for spreading disease to animals and humans, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has released a manual to help countries minimize the risks to public health. The guide aims to increase public understanding on the changes that affect bat populations and approaches to limiting the exchange of viruses between species.

The publication, titled “Investigating the Role of Bats in Emerging Zoonoses: Balancing Ecology, Conservation and Public Health Interest,” provides a resource on bat history, biology, monitoring, handling and disease screening.

The manual underscores the important role that bats play in pollination, spreading seeds, and control of insects. However, it notes, bats increasingly are brought into close contact with people and livestock. While bats provide a vector for viruses and diseases, in most cases exposure from bats is usually a result of human activity.

The manual relies on a “One Health” approach that addresses zoonotic diseases through a multi-disciplinary perspective to monitor connections between species and their agro-ecological habitats. [FAO Press Release] [Publication: Investigating the Role of Bats in Emerging Zoonoses: Balancing ecology, conservation and public health interest]