Sharp-nosed sniffer dogs found bat meat stuffed in a passenger's luggage at an airport in Thailand.

The beagles from the Quarantine and Inspection Canine Unit detected smoked bat and processed pork at the Suvarnabhumi International Airport serving the capital Bangkok on November 8.

The meat products were found in a yellow suitcase that had come from Kunming City in China - one of several countries considered 'high-risk' by Thailand's Department of Livestock Development (DLD). The passenger was a Chinese national.

Officers confiscated 2.5 kilos of smoked bats, 2.5 kilos of smoked pork knuckles, and 4.5 kilos of smoked pork belly.

Smuggling animal carcasses is a criminal offence in Thailand under Section 31 of its 2015 Animal Epidemic Act.

Somchuan Rattanamangkhalanon, director-general of the DLD, said: 'The sniffer dogs are on high alert for smuggled products coming from vulnerable countries like Cambodia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Laos, Vietnam and China.'

He added that the meat will be tested for diseases before being destroyed according to DLD regulations.

Bats are notorious for being hosts of various viruses and pathogens. The flying mammals were previously blamed for the spread of Covid-19 - a theory which has since been debunked.

Meanwhile, pigs and pig products can carry a highly contagious virus that causes African swine fever. Though harmless to humans, the disease is virulent and can decimate large populations of pigs due to its high mortality rate.

Earlier this week, Thai food vlogger Phonchanok Srisunaklua sparked outrage and was later arrested after recording a video of herself eating bat soup.

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 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 laboratory.

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.