Could COVID-19 spread to wildlife in the Arctic?

Humans aren't the only species that can catch the deadly coronavirus. Wildlife, particularly one species of whale in the Arctic, could also be susceptible to COVID-19, a team of researchers suggests.

The one species, the narwhal, is an Arctic whale known for its huge nine-foot tusk.

“Scientists have a difficult-enough time keeping up with the human spread of this virus, so we are eager to monitor an animal that is particularly susceptible to infection,” said Martin Nweeia, an assistant professor at the Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine in Cleveland, in a statement.

Nweeia will lead a research team to understand more about how SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, could spread to some nondomesticated animals, such as the narwhal. Narwhals spend their lives in the Arctic waters of Canada, Greenland, Norway and Russia, according to the World Wildlife Fund. 

Similar to other toothed whales, narwhals do not have the needed immune systems to combat viruses. 

“If this coronavirus were to gain a foothold in wildlife, there could be potential cascading impacts for ecosystems worldwide and the communities that rely on them,” he added. 

Currently, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no evidence to suggest the virus that causes COVID-19 is circulating in free-living wildlife in the U.S. or that wildlife might be a source of infection for people in the U.S.

However, other animals, both in zoos and pets, have contracted the disease in the U.S. The most well-known case was that of the lions and tigers infected at the Bronx Zoo in April.  

The CDC also said that a small number of pets in the U.S., including dogs and cats, have been reported to be infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, mostly after close contact with people with the illness.

The Arctic may not be the only location where wildlife is susceptible to COVID-19. In Africa, collaborators with Nweeia’s team have also begun to study the Ugandan lowland gorilla – a species that Nweeia said “could be wiped out" if just one gorilla contracts the disease.

In addition to pinpointing the risk COVID-19 poses to wildlife, Nweeia's research team will also study potential pathways of human-to-wildlife transmission. 

The virus that causes COVID-19 can also survive in wastewater, and researchers will study the impact of how untreated water can affect the potential spread of the virus on wildlife. 

"This research is about prevention, not reaction," Nweeia said in a statement. "By better understanding what can happen, we’re trying to stay ahead of problems and prevent them."