Bats Getting A Bad Rap

[Kristijntje]

True, bats carry deadly diseases, but it's human beings who cause the outbreaks

Bats have been getting a bad rap. Last autumn, a team of scientists tied bats to the deadly SARS outbreaks. Bats in China, they said, are likely where the virus hides between human outbreaks...

But as researchers have worked to uncover the mysterious links between bats and these emerging viruses, they say they have stumbled upon an even wilier culprit working behind the scenes: humans. It now seems that these outbreaks, and likely many others, were set off when people encroached on rain forests, expanded wild animal markets, or made other changes that removed the natural barriers that keep diseases at bay...

full article: http://www.boston.com/news/globe/health_...man_story/

[kim]

True, bats carry deadly diseases

So do humans.