[Laboratory diagnosis of rabies in chiroptera carried out in a metropolitan area of southeastern region Brazil].

Between January, 1988 and December, 1992 the S. Paulo Animal Disease Control Center subjected 289 bats to rabies examinations, utilizing the direct immunofluorescence and biological techniques. Two insectiverous bats belonging to the species Nyctinomops macrotis, representing 0.69% of the total sample, tested positive. Both animals had been captured alive in residential neighborhoods of the city, one in 1988 in the living room of a 7th floor apartment and the other in 1990 on top of a wall surrounding a private house. In the biological tests, the disease showed incubation periods of 13 and 11 days respectively. Although the existence of infected insectiverous bats in urban areas is cause for concern, indiscriminate predatory action against such species can in no way be justified-particularly bearing in mind their importance in preserving the ecological balance of the insect population so prevalent in cities.