Beijing customs capture a large bat inside cabin of an inbound flight. Photo: Beijing Daily

According to media reports on Tuesday, one live bat in the cabin of an inbound flight was captured by Beijing Capital International Airport Customs.

Customs officers immediately investigated whether the crew and passengers were scratched or bitten by the bat, and supervised the aircraft's sanitation process. At the same time, the captured bat was sent to a laboratory for species identification and pathogen testing. 

After identification, it was found that the captured bat was serotine bat, with its scientific name being Eptesicus serotinus. This was the first time that a serotine bat intercepted on an inbound aircraft at the Beijing port.

The habitat types of the serotine bat are diverse, including caves, rock crevices, buildings, roofs, and gaps in doors, windows, and walls. They are distributed throughout the Eurasian continent and North Africa, and there are four subspecies distributed in China. Despite a wide distribution, the serotine bat's population is relatively small in China.