Ecological countermeasures to prevent pathogen spillover and subsequent pandemics

Substantial global attention is focused on how to reduce the risk of future pandemics. Reducing this risk requires investment in prevention, preparedness, and response. Although preparedness and response have received significant focus, prevention, especially the prevention of zoonotic spillover, remains largely absent from global conversations. This oversight is due in part to the lack of a clear definition of prevention and lack of guidance on how to achieve it. To address this gap, we elucidate the mechanisms linking environmental change and zoonotic spillover using spillover of viruses from bats as a case study. We identify ecological interventions that can disrupt these spillover mechanisms and propose policy frameworks for their implementation. Recognizing that pandemics originate in ecological systems, we advocate for integrating ecological approaches alongside biomedical approaches in a comprehensive and balanced pandemic prevention strategy.

The bii4africa dataset of faunal and floral population intactness estimates across Africa's major land uses

Sub-Saharan Africa is under-represented in global biodiversity datasets, particularly regarding the impact of land use on species' population abundances. Drawing on recent advances in expert elicitation to ensure data consistency, 200 experts were convened using a modified-Delphi process to estimate 'intactness scores': the remaining proportion of an 'intact' reference population of a species group in a particular land use, on a scale from 0 (no remaining individuals) to 1 (same abundance as the reference) and, in rare cases, to 2 (populations that thrive in human-modified landscapes). The resulting bii4africa dataset contains intactness scores representing terrestrial vertebrates (tetrapods: ±5,400 amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals) and vascular plants (±45,000 forbs, graminoids, trees, shrubs) in sub-Saharan Africa across the region's major land uses (urban, cropland, rangeland, plantation, protected, etc.) and intensities (e.g., large-scale vs smallholder cropland). This dataset was co-produced as part of the Biodiversity Intactness Index for Africa Project. Additional uses include assessing ecosystem condition; rectifying geographic/taxonomic biases in global biodiversity indicators and maps; and informing the Red List of Ecosystems.

Complementary bat (Mammalia: Chiroptera) survey techniques uncover two new country records for Nigeria

Knowledge of the bat fauna in Nigeria is limited due to use of outdated collection techniques, and infrequent sampling effort.  To advance knowledge of bat diversity in the country, a survey of bats from three localities:—Emu, Okomu National Park (ONP), and Ososo—in southern Nigeria was conducted using mist nets set at canopy and at ground level from February–September 2011.  During 28 capture nights involving a total of 202.7 mist net/nights, 239 individuals belonging to 27 bat species in eight families (Emballonuridae, Hipposideridae, Megadermatidae, Molossidae, Nycteridae, Pteropodidae, Rhinolophidae, and Vespertilionidae) were recorded.  A total of 130, 64, 45 individuals of 8, 13 and 11 species were recorded from Emu, Okomu, and Ososo, respectively. Two new country records, Casinycteris campomaanensis and Chaerephon aloysiisabaudiae, both collected from Okomu National Park, are reported for Nigeria.  Whereas the former species was collected in a canopy high stacked mist net setup, the latter was collected in a ground level mist net, demonstrating the value of employing contemporary and complementary sampling techniques especially in such understudied regions of Africa.