With the development of the epidemic in Covid-19, the public’s concern and concern about the wild animals around them are also increasing.
Recently, Minhang platform, a hotline for greening city appearance in Shanghai, received a call from the public: "Oh, there are bats in my house, what should I do?" Will it infect the virus? "
After receiving the call, Minhang District Yebao Station and the town Yebao Department immediately rushed to the scene for disposal. After all the partitions in the kitchen ceiling were removed, traces of bat habitation and a large amount of feces were found, but no living bats were found. In order to alleviate the public’s concerns, the disposal personnel disinfected the indoor environment.
I learned from the news that this Spring Festival, the Shanghai Wild Insurance Department is very busy. On the 10th day of the first month alone, the staff of Minhang District Wildlife Protection and Management Station dispatched six times, all of which came to the door to drive away the wintering bats that residents saw around their homes.
Image source: People’s Political Consultative Conference Daily
Bats were given a "bad name" because of an epidemic in novel coronavirus. It seems that people’s worries are not just bats. Now, how on earth should we get along with wild animals?
Wild animals can coexist peacefully with people.
Australia, far away from the ocean, has also attracted much attention because of "bats".
The flying fruit bats make the residents of Ingham town very uneasy, and the number of these fruit bats has even exceeded the number of local residents.
Why do bats stay in cities?
"Behind people’s surprise and incomprehension of bats in cities, there is actually a misunderstanding of urban ecosystems. In our work, we found that in a reasonably planned city, the types and quantities of urban animals far exceed the imagination of ordinary citizens. " Wang Fang, a researcher at the School of Life Sciences of Fudan University, has been observing and tracking the wild animals in the city. He believes that bats have actually found an niche in the city that does not interfere with humans.
For example, in Qingpu, Shanghai, the insects around the city’s rivers and lakes provide it with enough protein food, and the warm climate in the city reduces their mortality in winter, while the cracks in urban buildings are like cracks in wild rock walls, which can be used to inhabit. The adaptation of bats to the urban environment actually represents the possibility of the coexistence of wild animals and people.
Seeing bats blindly panics. Under the current epidemic cloud, this may be a common concern of many people. In Wang Fang’s view, "in fact, the differences in morphology and habits between bats are simply heaven and earth, and whether or not they carry viruses and what kinds of viruses they carry are also very different."
"The distribution area of Covid-19’s potential natural reservoir Jutoubat is in various mountainous areas. The key to their survival is to find caves as habitats and not to enter the Shanghai urban area. Even if it is a chrysanthemum bat, not every individual has the original virus of Covid-19, and the proportion of individuals carrying the virus is very low. " Wang Fang reminded people to stay calm when they found bats.
Shanghai wildlife protection management department also gave a suggestion: "Bats are in hibernation, so it is best not to disturb them."
If bats are found in their homes, it is not recommended for the public to catch them themselves; You can ask the local wildlife department to expel them and help clean and disinfect the environment. After expulsion, self-block holes or pipes to prevent bats from entering again.
What about stray animals? Is it safe?
The epidemic continues, and what is more closely related to people is whether the stray animals outside are not safe. Do you want to "clean up" wild animals?
At present, there is no evidence that cats and dogs will be infected with the new coronavirus, but there is no evidence that cats and dogs will not be infected with the new coronavirus.
The popular science article of the shell team pointed out that unlike domestic, immune and controllable pets, the stray animals without owners outside are immune and uncontrollable, so the risk is relatively large.
Professionals suggest that from the perspective of epidemic prevention, the public should avoid contact with stray animals at this stage, "whether the animals are dead or alive."
We should know that stray cats and dogs are not a healthy part of the wild ecosystem, and many animal protectors also take this opportunity to advocate that the stray animal population should be controlled for the purpose of improving the overall animal welfare and avoiding causing greater damage to the fragile ecosystem around.
Why not clean up the wild animals? The article on the shell emphasizes that stray and scattered cats and dogs have more contact with humans than wild animals; Secondly, the world belongs not only to human beings and livestock raised by human beings, but also to "aborigines" such as wild animals and plants. A healthy ecosystem composed of wild animals and plants is also very important for the long-term development of human beings.
"The most important thing is that the virus that caused the epidemic was not spread by wild animals actively, but was actively infected by human poaching, slaughtering and eating them."
Let’s take bats for example. In fact, like most wild animals, it is also avoiding contact with humans. As long as it is left alone, it is not only harmless but also very beneficial. It plays a vital role in the biological chain. In this case, what we can do is to be safe, not to disturb each other, to reduce contact with bats, and not to eat bats.
Love it and leave it in nature.
In fact, there is still a long way to go to establish such an idea of not disturbing wild animals and not having close contact with them.
Just last year, our reporter reported on wild animals, and we noticed that there are more and more young people raising and buying and selling "alternative pets" whether in the market of flowers, birds, fish and insects or on the Internet.
The popularity of "exotic pets" has broken the traditional pet pattern with cats, dogs and ornamental fish as the mainstay. However, many "exotic pets" actually come from wild or artificially bred offspring of wild provenances, and some come from other countries and regions, including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals.
Experts remind that "different pets" can be raised without wanting to raise them. In the "exotic pet" trade, animal welfare is not guaranteed and species protection is threatened. For people, there are many health risks and high illegal risks.
In the interview, Guo Jinghui, the exotic pet project manager of the World Animal Protection Association, told this reporter that from a biological point of view, wild animals are still wild animals even if they can be farmed artificially. They have not evolved and formed genetic characteristics suitable for artificial breeding, which is also the essential difference between wild animals and domestic animals.
"Although wild animals can be successfully raised by humans, their nature and habits determine that they are not suitable for keeping as pets."
We therefore appeal to the public not to capture, buy or raise wild animals as pets.
In addition to the topic of "exotic pets", we also noticed that indoor zoos are introduced into many city shopping centers now, and the main people are in close contact with animals. In the semi-closed enclosure, the raccoon paced back and forth, and the auricular fox curled up in the corner.
"Wild animals need an open environment in the wild and interaction between groups. Even some large zoos in China can’t meet the needs of these wild animals, not to mention indoor shopping malls that don’t touch the ground all day and are difficult to see the sun." Zheng Yuru, wildlife project manager of the World Animal Protection Association, said.
In fact, there is a certain two-way risk when people are in close contact with wild animals. "Wild animals will have zoonotic pathogens in crowded shopping malls. In the design of global zoos, there is not much experience to deal with the pollution problem of indoor zoos." Zheng Yu said.
The best way to express your love for wild animals is not to keep them for yourself, but to leave them in the wild habitat.
"The best solution is to let wild animals live in the wild, and choose ‘ Animal-friendly ’ Travel mode, long-distance observation of animals, avoiding direct contact, not disturbing, not hurting. "
I hope that such a simple wish will be achieved as soon as possible after the epidemic.