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The Bat Specialist Group of the IUCN Species Survival Commission (BSG) is one of a number of specialist groups formed within the Species Survival Commission (SSC) of IUCN-The World Conservation Union (IUCN). We are a collaborative multidisciplinary network of bat biologists and conservationists providing support and promoting bat conservation activities throughout the world.
Bats make up one fifth of all terrestrial mammals (1,462 species; Simmons and Cirranello, 2023). They are among the most endangered of the world's creatures, primarily because much of their habitat has been eliminated by human development or because they are persecuted. Because bats are important seed dispersers and pollinators for many native plants, and key insect predators globally, their loss has serious consequences for the ecosystems to which they belong.
Bats make up one fifth of all terrestrial mammals (1,462 species; Simmons and Cirranello, 2023). They are among the most endangered of the world's creatures, primarily because much of their habitat has been eliminated by human development or because they are persecuted. Because bats are important seed dispersers and pollinators for many native plants, and key insect predators globally, their loss has serious consequences for the ecosystems to which they belong.
Latest News
Guidelines for Field Hygiene
The Bat Specialist Group OneHealth Working Group has published guidelines and recommendations for field hygiene for all people who do fieldwork with bats anywhere in the world. They update our previous guidelines that were developed specifically to address bat-related fieldwork during the Covid-19 pandemic. These guidelines address "ordinary" circumstances and aim to minimize the risk of pathogen transmission in all directions - humans to bats, bats to humans, and between bat species or populations, facilitated by humans. These guidelines exist as much to protect bat populations as the humans who study them.
Posted 25 June.2024
Forum on Mitigating Human-wildlife Transmission of SARS-CoV-2
Bat Specialist Group Guidelines for Diverse Stakeholders. June 2021 In June 2021, the Bat Specialist Group hosted a forum for other SSC Specialist Groups and affiliates in which members Julie Shapiro, Tigga Kingston (co-chair), Rodrigo Medellin (co-chair) and Stefania Leopardi presented the BSG guidelines and the rationale behind them.
Posted 29 June.2021
FAQs Bats and Covid-19
A new page has been added to this site to summarize Frequently Asked Questions about bats and Covid-19. It’s important to remember that COVID-19 is a human disease, not a bat disease.
Posted 06.Nov 2020
A Portfolio of Covid-19 Guidelines have been released by the IUCN SSC Bat Specialist Group.
On 13 April 2020 the IUCN Species Survival Commission Bat Specialist Group recommended the suspension of all field work that involves interactions with bats while it considered the risk of human-bat transmission of SARS-CoV-2. Subsequently, the Bat Specialist Group convened a global panel of experts with expertise ranging from bat ecologists to virologists who have assessed the scientific evidence for human-to-bat transmission and efficacy of risk mitigation strategies. It is the opinion of the panel that there is a credible risk of human-to-bat transmission of SARSCoV-
2, but this risk can be reduced using appropriate mitigation strategies.
Read more and download full documents>
Posted: 23 Aug 2020
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