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May 09, 2022

Research published: Nonlethal parasites reduce how much their wild hosts eat, leading to ecosystem effects

A new study led by Washington University in St. Louis uses a mathematical model and a global meta-analysis to highlight the cascading consequences of common parasitic infections in wild animals on terrestrial ecosystems.

See news release by Washington University.

Excerpt: “In bringing together experts in a transdisciplinary One Health
approach, we bridged health, ecological and theoretical scientists to
expand on traditional studies addressing impacts of parasites on
individual hosts and host populations to better understand these impacts
on the ecosystems where ruminant hosts and their parasites live,” said Sharon Deem, director of the Saint Louis Zoo Institute for Conservation Medicine, a co-author of the new study.

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