‘Bat feast’ animal videos at African cave offer clues to how deadly viruses spread

Key Points:

• Researchers in Uganda used camera traps near Python Cave, a known roost for Egyptian fruit bats carrying Marburg virus, capturing footage of 10 species scavenging or hunting bats, providing new insight into potential intermediate hosts for the virus.
• The study documented behaviors such as blue monkeys grabbing bats, a fight between a crowned eagle and a Nile monitor over bats, and leopards hunting live bats, which had not been previously confirmed.
• Over 200 people, including tourists and school groups, were recorded approaching the cave within four months, with only one visitor wearing a mask despite warnings about the deadly Marburg virus, which has no proven treatment or vaccine.
• Marburg virus outbreaks have often been linked to cave visits, with 43% of confirmed outbreaks since 1967 associated with cave contact, highlighting significant public health risks from human interaction with bat habitats.
• Despite safety measures like a viewing platform and warning signs established in 2011, visitors continue to flout rules and approach dangerously close to the cave, prompting concerns from researchers and calls for better management.