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New studies show how to save parasites and why it's important:
Unlike the many charismatic mammals, fishes and birds that receive our attention (and our conservation dollars), parasites are thought of as something to eradicate—and certainly not something to protect.
But only 4% of known parasites can infect humans, and the majority actually serve critical ecological roles, like regulating wildlife that might otherwise balloon in population size and become pests. Still, only about 10% of parasites have been identified and, as a result, they are mostly left out of conservation activities and research.
An international group of scientists wants to change that. About a dozen leading parasite ecologists, including University of Washington's Chelsea Wood, published a paper Aug. 1 in the journal Biological Conservation, which lays out an ambitious global conservation plan for parasites.
"Parasites are an incredibly diverse group of species, but as a society, we do not recognize this biological diversity as valuable," said Wood, an assistant professor in the UW School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. "The point of this paper is to emphasize that we are losing parasites and the functions they serve without even recognizing it."
The authors propose 12 goals for the next decade that could advance parasite biodiversity conservation through a mix of research, advocacy and management.
"Even though we know little to nothing about most parasite species, we can still take action now to conserve parasite biodiversity," said Skylar Hopkins, paper and project co-lead and an assistant professor at North Carolina State University.
[...] Traditionally, the field of disease ecology assumes one of two paths: That we are either heading toward a future of more disease and massive outbreaks or toward a future of parasite extinction. This paper shows that both trajectories are happening simultaneously, Wood explained.
Journal Reference:
Chelsea L. Wood et al. How host diversity and abundance affect parasite infections: Results from a whole-ecosystem manipulation of bird activity, Biological Conservation (2020). DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108683
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 03 2020, @04:29PM (7 children)
Huh? You literally picked the opposites.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/aug/02/illness-obesity-racism-who-gets-blamed-for-our-crises-the-poor-of-course [theguardian.com]
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Monday August 03 2020, @06:23PM
Two groups of parasites might find a symbiotic relationship. I don't see bankers and welfare recipients as opposites, in this context.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday August 03 2020, @06:23PM
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 03 2020, @06:29PM (1 child)
The bank bailout crew and welfare "entitled" impose on the rest of us in the same manner. Stop dignifying scum in suits and insulting the working class.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday August 04 2020, @03:26PM
+1
As someone said earlier before Runaway disappeared in his own navel: Actual society level parasites are corruption and/or the inherited wealth douchbags skim a living without doing any labor. These days it is a moral high ground to never lift a finger- you're "very smart" if you game others into carrying your costs.
(Score: 3, Touché) by Bot on Monday August 03 2020, @07:48PM
Banks thrive on you needing money. Social parasites use your money (GP was probably not referring to poor people who need social money to reboot their life). They are partners, not opposites.
Back in the day, in my place, when you wanted to open a shop, you had to deal with the institutions. Which sure attracted corruption like any power given to institutions, but the placement of businesses is so overt that few risked being considered corrupt because of authorizing too much stuff. When people closed shop they had a valuable license that compounded their pension funds.
Then EU comes, and NO! Freedom! everybody can open whatever! liberalism! privatization!
So, guy X goes to the bank.
- director
- wat
- lend me money
- why
- want to open restaurant
- good idea
- thank you
- because your business depletes an already stretched out consumer base
- is that a good thing
- for you, no, for us yea
- because you will eat up my house if i fail
- and because if you don't fail somebody else will have problems and come here asking "lend me money"
Account abandoned.
(Score: 2) by Opportunist on Tuesday August 04 2020, @01:09AM (1 child)
Not really. No later than 2008 bankers became welfare monkeys of the worst kind, the kind that is the most expensive with the least ROI.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday August 04 2020, @03:32PM
Difference is that one group has to jump through hoops to get pennies for food, while the other gets the money fire hose any time they lose a 50-50 bet.