ยฉ The Author(s) 2017. To investigate bat coronaviruses (Co. Vs), we collected 132 rectal swabs and urine samples from five bat species in three countries in southwestern China. Seven Co. Vs belonging to distinct groups of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-like Co. Vs and ฮฑ-Co. Vs were detected in samples from least horseshoe bats. Samples from other bat species were negative for these viruses, indicating that the least horseshoe bat represents one of the natural reservoirs and mixers for strains of Co. Vs and has a pivotal role in the evolution and dissemination of these viruses. The genetic and evolutionary characteristics of these strains were described. Whole-genome sequencing of a new isolate (F46) from a rectal swab from a least horseshoe bat showed that it contained 29 699 nucleotides, excluding the poly (A) tail, with 13 open reading frames (ORFs). Phylogenetic and recombination analyses of F46 provided evidence of natural recombination between bat SARS-like Co. Vs (Rs3367 and LYRa11) or SARS-CoV (BJ01), suggesting that F46 could be a new recombinant virus from SARS-like Co. Vs or SARS-Co. Vs.