Conservation in the time of COVID-19

At the onset of 2020, the COVID-19 virus abruptly hit mankind. Never before has a pandemic spread so aggressively and impacted the entire human race almost simultaneously. And now we are starting to feel some of the real and major impacts of what a global pandemic can cause. It is well documented the economic, social and other human-related impacts, but the environmental impacts have been less well described. 

Research indicates that the COVID-19 originated from a coronavirus discovered in the Chinese Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus affinis) that by chance mutated in another wild animal (probably an endangered species of Pangolin) held alive in horrendus cages in a wildlife market in Wuhan, China.

Despite wildlife organizations demanding an end of wildlife markets, few authorities would listen to conservationists. And yet the frequency and intensity of pandemics and serious novel viral outbreaks is actually on the rise primarily due to the trafficking of wildlife and environmental degradation.


More info at https://proaves.org/en/conservation-in-the-time-of-covid-19/