Where could the next pandemic -- and the tools to fight it -- come from? Scientists are studying bats Updated Dec 17, 2020; Posted Dec 17, 2020 A researcher for Brazil's state-run Fiocruz Institute takes an oral swab sample from a bat captured in the Atlantic Forest, at Pedra Branca state park, near Rio de Janeiro, Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020.AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo Facebook Share RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Night began to fall in Rio de Janeiro’s Pedra Branca state park as four Brazilian scientists switched on their flashlights to traipse along a narrow trail of mud through dense rainforest. The researchers were on a mission: capture bats and help prevent the next global pandemic.