The idea that all now common corona viruses started a pandemic sounds very plausible. At the same time, it makes the fact that there is a huge corona virus reservoir in bats very frightening.
The spread only increases the probability of more mutations and variants. I can’t imagine a future without it.
IIRC their immune system evolved to essentially tolerate foreign/damaged DNA because the heat caused by their flight would regularly damage cells. So viruses can basically move in and make themselves comfortable.
I mean technically we already have a precedent with trying to stop mosquito reproduction to curb malaria and other mosquito transmitted diseases.
I understand that from a virology standpoint there is a lot to learn from bats and that they have an insanely robust immune system but is it really reasonable to allow these colonies to thrive unchecked with thousands of bats tightly packed together? It's just that it seems the most recent threats Ebola, MERS, SARS-Cov1, now SARS-Cov2, all seem to have had a bat colony as it's genetic origin.
This comment helped me to think to find out – thank you – and indeed: https://www.batswithoutborders.org/role-of-bats-in-our-ecosy...
I see it such that we must learn from bats. And nature. And learn to collaborate better among ourselves.
If you rationalize it like this, then why is it bad to slightly reduce human population?
I would guess-estimate that, if given the choice and the cognition, bats would likely also choose to self-preservate to the detriment of Humans.
As we can see with 7+ billions people on earth (or lemmings) too much reproduction threatens self-preservation, hence my previous comment.
If we take out any emotion and go by pure logic, a virus culling the herd doesn't seem to be a bad thing.
Now I'm like anyone else, I'd rather not be culled but I understand that if we don't find solutions, nature will.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/sep/07/badger-c...
> I can’t imagine a future without it.
And a past? Coronaviruses have been around in animals for at least nearly a hundred years.
The domestic cat edition (FIP) isn't too rare. Many cats live with it unaffected their entire life. It's a type of virus, and viruses are everywhere.
Just because a virus hops species doesn't mean it does anything interesting to/with that species. I'd wager most mutations are benign.
I would be surprised if there was a (reasonably near) past without it.
It has probably been everywhere for a long time. The point of the article is that coronaviruses jumping to humans is something that happens fairly often.
Idk random idea...I'm by no means an expert, but trying to think ways to mitigate it.