Graphic detail | Batting down disease
Habitat loss and climate change increase the risk of new diseases
Bats account for 90% of predicted viral transmission between mammal species
Although scientists have not determined how covid-19 emerged, the leading theory is zoonotic spillover (transmission from animals). The death toll from covid has given efforts to prevent future pandemics new urgency. A recent study in Nature on bats, which carry sars-CoV-2’s closest cousins, finds that the risk of such spillovers is rising—though changes in human activity could return it to safer levels.
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