Home
Business
Metro
Nation
World
Sports
Feature
Opinion
View more »Opinion Columns
Wan LixinOpinion deputy editor of Shanghai Daily
Making a strong case for communal approach to health
What I learned as a parent when school reopened
Sunday
- Subscribe
Bats are our friends, not our enemies
Print Edition
Bats are not our enemies. But stricter rules and more cooperation across authorities are key to ensuring public health.
The novel coronavirus outbreak has greatly raised people’s awareness of environmental protection.
But some became so extreme and started to kill bats as the virus is believed to jump from bats to humans.
In fact, it’s senseless, Wang Fang, researcher from the Life Sciences College of Fudan University, told an online lecture held by the Shanghai Natural History Museum.
“Bats can hunt flies and mosquitoes up in the air, and they can help with the pollination of many types of fruit in the world,” Wang said.
“If they are killed. Our crops will die, and we will face mosquito crisis.”
“We can’t just recklessly make decision to kill animals that we don’t like.
“We have to figure out what roles they play in the natural world.”
Investigations in recent years show that only three types of bats are found in Shanghai.
They are common types, and belong to very different species from those living in mountains who are believed to spread the virus, Wang said.
“So, Shanghai residents don’t need to worry.”
Zhang Zhitong, Party secretary of Xincun area in Chongming, agreed.
He says it’s not a matter of killing bats.
Instead it’s a matter of protecting wildlife.
He pointed out that the current wildlife protection rules have some loopholes.
Trade on protected wildlife is banned.
But running businesses in wildlife without protected status is allowed under certain conditions.
That means not all wildlife is protected, Zhang said.
Also, there are conflicts between local governments and forestry authorities in law enforcement, he added.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
