The severe Ebola virus disease epidemic occurring in West Africa stems from a single zoonotic transmission event to a 2-year-old boy in Meliandou, Guinea. We investigated the zoonotic origins of the epidemic using wildlife surveys, interviews, and molecular analyses of bat and environmental samples. We found no evidence for a concurrent outbreak in larger wildlife. Exposure to fruit bats is common in the region, but the index case may have been infected by playing in a hollow tree housing a colony of insectivorous free-tailed bats (Mops condylurus). Bats in this family have previously been discussed as potential sources for Ebola virus outbreaks, and experimental data have shown that this species can survive experimental infection. These analyses expand the range of possible Ebola virus sources to include insectivorous bats and reiterate the importance of broader sampling efforts for understanding Ebola virus ecology.

As the only volant mammals, bats are captivating for their high taxonomic diversity, for their vital roles in ecosystems-particularly as pollinators and insectivores-and, more recently, for their important roles in the maintenance and transmission of zoonotic viral diseases. Genome sequences have identified evidence for a striking expansion of and positive selection in gene families associated with immunity. Bats have also been known to be hosts of malaria parasites for over a century, and as hosts, they possess perhaps the most phylogenetically diverse set of hemosporidian genera and species. To provide a molecular framework for the study of these parasites, we surveyed bats in three remote areas of the Upper Guinean forest ecosystem. We detected four distinct genera of hemosporidian parasites: Plasmodium, Polychromophilus, Nycteria, and Hepatocystis. Intriguingly, the two species of Plasmodium in bats fall within the clade of rodent malaria parasites, indicative of multiple host switches across mammalian orders. We show that Nycteria species form a very distinct phylogenetic group and that Hepatocystis parasites display an unusually high diversity and prevalence in epauletted fruit bats. The diversity and high prevalence of novel lineages of chiropteran hemosporidians underscore the exceptional position of bats among all other mammalian hosts of hemosporidian parasites and support hypotheses of pathogen tolerance consistent with the exceptional immunology of bats.Haemosporida | Chiroptera | vector-borne disease | molecular phylogeny | host-pathogen coevolution

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Hunting and loss of natural habitats increasingly threaten tropical biodiversity and ecosystems, particularly in Southeast Asia. Flying foxes often persist in anthropogenic areas where other wildlife has vanished, and where they play a significant ecological role in vegetation regeneration in disturbed habitats. Detailed knowledge on the foraging behavior of flying foxes is crucial for understanding how they survive in degraded habitats and for the management of human-wildlife conflicts. Thailand still harbors large colonies (several thousand individuals) of Lyle's flying fox (Pteropus lylei), a species ranked as Vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, at temples situated in agricultural landscapes. We used high-resolution global positioning system (GPS) loggers to study the movement and foraging behavior of this species at 2 temples in central Thailand during 2 seasons. We analyzed GPS and acceleration data of 19 tagged individuals, and assessed habitat use and diet. Foraging individuals commuted between day roosts and foraging areas each night, followed by small-scale movements in foraging areas, and showed high site fidelity during the study period. Maximum linear distances between day roosts and foraging areas varied greatly between individuals (2.2-23.6 km) but were similar between seasons. Tracked bats mostly foraged in farmland, plantations, and gardens, yet our data indicate that small mangrove remnants constitute important habitat components for Lyle's flying fox. We recorded a highly diverse diet of 34 food plant species, comprised of exotic crops and native plants as available. Our results suggest that conservation and landscape managers should preserve remaining native trees and natural vegetation in the study area as resources for Lyle's flying fox, at the same time reducing potential for conflicts between bats and humans on crops. They can further be used for public information campaigns integrating the potential of Lyle's flying fox as dispersers of useful plants and the human health risks through zoonotic diseases associated with hunting and consumption of this species.