Eliminating Bats After a Rabies Outbreak is a Poor Method Of Preventing Livestock Loss
A group of biologists from the University of Glasgow, working with colleagues from different Institutes in the nation of Peru, found that eliminating bat colonies after an outbreak of cattle rabies is not an efficient way to stop the spread of the disease.
In their research, published in the journal Science Advances, the team analyzed infection rates and directed viral genome sequencing to better understand spread of rabies from bats to livestock.
Vampire bat, the main cause of rabies outbreak in cattle
Cattle ranchers and other livestock managers in South America have long struggled with periodic outbreaks of rabies.
It is believed that the main cause of rabies outbreaks in cattle is vampire bats, although there is also a variety of beings that it is spread.
Helpless domesticated animals become easy prey for these bats, thus being their source of food. The wounds caused by them after the attack can sometimes promote skin infections. But what actually poses the greatest danger are the diseases they carry.
Throughout the ages, vampiricides have been handled in two ways, before or during outbreaks. Neither form has been strictly tested for effectiveness. In this new path, the scientists sought to study whether the killing of bat colonies using vampiricides is an effective way of mitigating rabies outbreaks.
The first step taken was to analyze the infection rates of several cattle herds in Peru. They then directed the genome sequencing of rabies viruses collected from infected cows on site. The two surveys took place over a two-year period.
The investigators did not find a measurable decrease in infections in livestock (that is, compared to herds from locations where culling was not performed) when ranchers performed culling activities on bats after finding infections in their herds. They even found evidence that infection rates rose. However, they found decreases in infection rates when farmers sacrificed bats before discovering infections in their flocks.
Search results
The group of researchers suggests that the application of vampiricides after the onset of an outbreak causes bats to abandon their colony. This will carry them to start to frequent other means in search of housing. When this occurs, they reduce disease transmission among bats. However, increase rates in cattle, as infected bats go on to infect several cows before dying.
Read the original article on PHYS.
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