It was March 11, 2020
when the WHO declared
that Covid-19 was, to all intents and purposes, a pandemic.
I remember how, until a few days before, many of us were rather skeptical
about the potential of this new coronavirus,
also on the basis of expert advice.
Yet on that day, on that 11 March 2020, I wondered:
but if really our species, the Homo Sapiens,
face a pandemic,
face a health crisis,
a huge spread of infections,
we would really be able to plan the interventions
effectively?
At the time, it was rather difficult to answer this question:
yet I began to wonder, precisely,
what this infection was,
what it represented
not so much for our species, but also for other species.
In fact, we humans
we are definitely not the only animals, species
which faces as tough a challenge as a pandemic.
And so, starting from my academic background,
from my various experiences,
I have begun to consider
that there really are so many cases, in nature,
of infection control behaviours:
hygienic behaviour.
For example, we could mention the case of birds.
Some of these species, such as sparrows or flocks,
they use a very, I might say, bizarre behavior
which is fumigation,
very similar to what we do in the house with incense.
That is, they apply aromatic herbs -
in some cases, they are also cigarette butts -
inside the nest.
The purpose is to disinfect it, to make it more sanitized
to reduce the possibility of disease occurrence;
and so it's absolutely similar
to what we do in our homes, perhaps with incense.
And then, turning to the world of mammals,
we find a true master of hygiene:
the badger.
In our woods, the badger is a night dweller,
and lives in dens,
usually covered with mosses, leaves and shrubs.
Especially in the winter months,
the rate usually changes this coating,
exposes it to the sun and replaces the foliage.
Why is that?
Because it reduces the possibility of parasite proliferation
or any pathogens.
Besides, we have some cases of cosmetics, so body care.
The example of brown capuchine monkeys, these monkeys coming from South America
that use a kind of mosquito spray.
They exploit the irritating substance produced by the millipedes,
to remove mosquitoes and avoid bites.
And then we have the case of African elephants,
elephants using clay, they sprinkle it on the skin,
to reduce the chance of sunburn
which clearly could then compromise their immune system
and thus increase the risk of infectious diseases.
And so, faced with this scenario,
we might ask ourselves:
but what has this got to do,
with what we have, for example, in this current pandemic?
Well, if we tried to take a closer look at the animal world,
we will notice that many of the behaviors
that we are putting in place in recent months
are completely similar, if not identical,
to those that are implemented by other animal species.
And so, talking about mammals,
we could quote our cousins, the chimpanzees.
Indeed, according to the observations of the British ethologist Jane Goodall,
and more recently confirmed by scientific studies,
when, within the group,
a chimpanzee expresses clear symptoms of an infectious disease
is pushed off the group, even with some violence,
until he recuperates.
At that point, he can be reinserted into the group.
So in this case we see how the common, collective good
comes before the interests of the individuals.
And it's an absolutely very similar case
to what we might call "quarantine" or "social distancing"
for us humans.
Let's now focus on a completely different world,
to the world of insects.
in fact, domestic bees
are the real inventors of disinfectant gel.
Inside the hive, we find the propolis.
It is a substance made by bees,
starting from a vegetable resin,
and is used for a specific purpose:
to reduce the chance of infections inside the hive
between individuals
and also, somehow, as a disinfectant cement,
to seal the various cells,
and then make the hive even safer.
Why do I quote bees?
Because actually social insects, like ants or termites,
are a true example to us humans,
because many of the behaviors they put in place,
from the point of view of coordination as a superorganism,
are actually really effective behaviors
and that should make us think
as we, Homo Sapiens, are a social species also;
but we find ourselves in deep trouble
in coordinating and allying against a common enemy.
And so, at this point it would be legit to wonder:
can we really learn something from animals
on the subject of immunity, hygiene
or infection control?
Well, a lot of scientific studies tell us how, in recent years,
a great increase has been observed in so-called emerging diseases,
these new infections caused by a spillover,
a jump from a species to another.
And despite our species, Homo Sapiens,
they had to face in a more remote past
some very serious pandemics,
such as the plague, such as Spanish flu,
or more recently devastating viruses such as HIV and Ebola,
despite this, Covid 19 admittedly surprised us,
and somehow shattered the idea of Homo Sapiens ruling the world,
and instead made us rediscover vulnerable, fragile as a species.
So, in light of all this dramatic scenario,
there's some good news.
In fact, we have a second chance today.
The time has come to change our vision,
and take a biocentric perspective
that allows us to recreate a harmonious relationship
with other animal species and with all nature.
Until these decades, our relationship with nature
was toxic:
we have polluted, we have deforested,
we have consumed the soil, destroyed habitats of animal species.
And today, at last, we really have a Second Chance.
So, at this point we should ask ourselves,
how animals could come in handy?
If any,
as we have seen in these cases,
we humans haven't invented much:
on the contrary, the animals have really anticipated us,
with great effectiveness.
And so, right now, maybe, we could think
that animals could teach us something.
Even, perhaps, to better manage a possible future pandemic.