Rising monkey and pig populations pose human disease risk

Date:
June 30, 2023
Source:
University of Queensland
Summary:
Exploding populations of wild pigs and macaque monkeys in Southeast
Asia are threatening native forests and disease outbreaks in
livestock and people, according to new research.


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FULL STORY ========================================================================== Exploding populations of wild pigs and macaque monkeys in Southeast Asia
are threatening native forests and disease outbreaks in livestock and
people, according to research led by The University of Queensland.

Dr Matthew Luskin, from UQ's School of the Environment, and his team
collated and analysed species population data from across the region,
some of it collected with a network of cameras.

"Macaques and wild pigs are taking over Southeast Asia's disturbed
forests," Dr Luskin said.

"Humans are largely to blame for this by altering forests with logging
and establishing palm oil farms which provide food and ideal breeding conditions for these animals.

"We saw that wild boar and macaque numbers were 400 per cent higher in
forests near the plantations than in untouched environments.

"These animals take full advantage of the farmland, raiding crops and
thriving on calorie-rich foods." Setting and monitoring the camera traps provided Dr Luskin with an up-close experience of the exploding numbers.

"I encountered huge troops of macaques in Thailand, Malaysia, and
Indonesia - - they were everywhere in the forest edges, following us
and interfering with our equipment," Dr Luskin said.

"At first it was frustrating but then was eerie as we became completely surrounded." Dr Luskin said there were significant human health risks
in the rising pig and macaque populations.

"The wildlife origins of the COVID-19 pandemic show that mammals in
human- modified ecosystems often host high pathogen loads and pose
serious zoonotic disease risks," he said.

"Both pigs and macaques are recognised as carriers of diseases that can
be transmitted to people and they're the most common species in a region considered to be the global zoonotic disease hotspot." Collaborator,
Professor Carlos Peres from the University of East Anglia (UK), said
abnormally high populations of wildlife species that are disease
reservoirs often occur in human-modified tropical forests.

"This study again shows that densely settled rural areas in Southeast
Asia may be a source of future human epidemics," he said.

University of East Anglia and Southern University of Science and
Technology (China) PhD candidate, Jonathan Moore, said the immediate
effects of the population explosions could be seen on native flora in
the affected regions.

"Both pigs and macaques trigger negative cascading impacts in these
pristine ecosystems," Mr Moore said.

"They kill the seeds and seedlings of native plants and eat bird and
reptile eggs.

"The Malaysian pigs alone were found to reduce rainforest tree
regeneration by 62 per cent." The researchers say action is needed to
minimise population expansions of wild pigs and macaques.

"Efforts to manage the populations of these species have failed in the
past because of their rapid reproductive capacity and public outcry,"
Dr Luskin said.

"Nobody favours needless killing of wildlife but the negative social and ecological impacts from hyperabundant pest species does demand ethical
and urgent management solutions."
* RELATED_TOPICS
o Health_&_Medicine
# STD # Chronic_Illness # Diseases_and_Conditions #
Human_Biology
o Plants_&_Animals
# Wild_Animals # Nature # Ecology_Research # Monkeys
* RELATED_TERMS
o Livestock o Rhesus_Macaque o Pig o Guinea_pig o Wild_Cat o
Tiger o Howler_monkey o Primate

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Queensland. Note:
Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Jonathan H. Moore, Luke Gibson, Zachary Amir, Wirong Chanthorn,
Abdul
Hamid Ahmad, Patrick A. Jansen, Calebe P. Mendes, Manabu Onuma,
Carlos A.

Peres, Matthew Scott Luskin. The rise of hyperabundant native
generalists threatens both humans and nature. Biological Reviews,
2023; DOI: 10.1111/ brv.12985 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230630123229.htm

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