Because some bats host viruses with zoonotic potential, we investigated human-bat interactions in rural Ghana during 2011-2012. Nearly half (46.6%) of respondents regularly visited bat caves; 37.4% had been bitten, scratched, or exposed to bat urine; and 45.6% ate bat meat. Human-bat interactions in rural Ghana are frequent and diverse.
Keywords: Ebola; MERS; Middle East respiratory syndrome; Nipah; SARS; West Africa; bats; severe acute respiratory syndrome; virus reservoir; viruses; zoonoses.