Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus.
Initial research has already pointed to bats as the source of the virus that has afflicted more than 20.5 million people and caused the deaths of over 748,000 worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The closest match to the coronavirus has been found in horseshoe bats in Yunnan in southern China.
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Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus.
Thai researchers hiked up a hill in Sai Yok National Park in the western province of Kanchanaburi to set up nets to trap some 200 bats from three different caves.
She believes it is likely they will find in Thailand’s bats the same virus that causes COVID-19.
Researchers carry equipment for catch bat in a cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Researchers set up equipment for catch bat in front of cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Researchers putting on PPE suits and standing in front of cave prepare catch bat inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus.(AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Researchers catch bat in front of cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus.(AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Professor from Kasetsart University Prateep Duengkae arrange bat prepare blood samples and taking swap samples from a bat's mouth inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
A researcher measures a bat inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
A researcher catches a bat to measure inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Researchers swap samples from a bat's mouth inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
A researcher swaps samples from a bat's mouth inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
A researcher releases a bat after taking blood sample bat inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
A researcher with a bat in a bag walk out from a cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP photoSakchai Lalit)
Thailand has 19 species of horseshoe bats but researchers said they have not yet been tested for the new coronavirus.
Researcher removing bat from a trapping net in cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Thai researchers hiked up a hill in Sai Yok National Park in the western province of Kanchanaburi to set up nets to trap some 200 bats from three different caves.
The team from the Thai Red Cross Emerging Infectious Diseases-Health Science Center took saliva, blood and stool samples from the bats before releasing them. They worked through the night and into the next day, taking samples not only from horseshoe bats but also from other bat species they caught in order to better understand pathogens carried by the animals.
The team was headed by Supaporn Wacharapluesadee, the center’s deputy chief, who has studied bats and diseases associated with them for more than 20 years. He was part of the group that helped Thailand confirm the first COVID-19 case outside China in January.
Researchers set up equipment for catch bat in front of cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Thai researchers are collecting samples from bats to test if they could also carry a novel coronavirus, similar to what bats in China are found to have. The result could help answer the question everyone is asking – what's the origin of the COVID-19 virus? (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
She believes it is likely they will find in Thailand’s bats the same virus that causes COVID-19.
“The pandemic is borderless,” she said. “The disease can travel with bats. It could go anywhere.”
Researchers set up equipment for catch bat in front of cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus.(AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Researchers carry equipment for catch bat in a cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Researchers set up equipment for catch bat in front of cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Researchers putting on PPE suits and standing in front of cave prepare catch bat inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus.(AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Researchers catch bat in front of cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus.(AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Professor from Kasetsart University Prateep Duengkae arrange bat prepare blood samples and taking swap samples from a bat's mouth inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
A researcher measures a bat inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
A researcher catches a bat to measure inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
Researchers swap samples from a bat's mouth inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
A researcher swaps samples from a bat's mouth inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, July 31, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
A researcher releases a bat after taking blood sample bat inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP PhotoSakchai Lalit)
A researcher with a bat in a bag walk out from a cave inside Sai Yok National Park in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. Researchers in Thailand have been trekking though the countryside to catch bats in their caves in an effort to trace the murky origins of the coronavirus. (AP photoSakchai Lalit)