A Thai food vlogger has sparked anger by eating bat soup despite the gruesome dish once being linked to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The YouTuber named Phonchanok Srisunaklua posted the gut-turning video earlier this week on her channel, 'Gin Zap Bep Nua Nua' meaning 'Eat spicy and delicious' in the local language.

Footage shows the woman tearing bits of meat from the flying mammals, which were soaking in a brown murky soup with cherry tomatoes.

She then held up a whole bat in front of the camera before munching on some of its bones with a loud crunch.

The food content creator has since deleted the video from her page after receiving criticism from her followers who were shocked that she would eat the dish.

Officials are now trying to trace Phonchanok amid fears that the bat in the soup could be a protected species.

Veterinarian Pattaraphon Manee-on, head of the wildlife health management group at the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, said: 'I was shocked to see it in the clip now. Because the incident should not happen both in Thailand and around the world, it is very risky behavior, especially as bats have a lot of pathogens.

'There is no proof that the hot water temperature will actually kill the germs. Just touching the saliva, blood, and the skin is considered a risk.

'Besides the concern about the disease in bats, this woman could be guilty of breaking the Preservation and Protection and Wildlife Act, B.E. 2019, because bats are protected animals.'

Bats were previously blamed for the novel coronavirus, initially named 2019-nCov, after it was claimed that the virus originated from a wet market in Wuhan, China.

A number of videos then emerged of benighted Chinese locals eating bats and other exotic animals.

It has never been proven that the virus originated from the wet market with another explanation being that Covid-19 was a man-made virus that leaked from a Chinese laboratory and was covered up by the rogue state.

However, bats are still potential vectors of disease since they carry a host of viruses and pathogens that may be transmitted to humans, Rangsarit Kanchanawanit of Chiang Mai University's Department of Medicine said.