ABOVE: © ISTOCK.COM, DAHRS
When humans alter the landscape through urbanization or agriculture the wildlife that occupied that space becomes displaced. According to a study published Wednesday (August 5) in Nature, animals that stick around after this disruption have a greater proportion of species that host zoonotic diseases than those in undisturbed areas.
The researchers use the Projecting Responses of Ecological Diversity in Changing Terrestrial Systems (PREDICTS) database in search of any pattern involving altered land and the presence of animals capable of hosting pathogens that can be harmful to humans, called zoonoses or zoonotic diseases. PREDICTS holds data from across six continents, including information on 376 species known to carry zoonoses and around 6,600 other species that don’t. The authors concluded that zoonotic disease hosts represent a greater proportion of the animals in areas with altered land and higher human activity than in remote, less-affected areas.
“What this means ...
