In an effort to protect endangered species, specifically those brought up in captive-rearing programs, conservation experts often do their best to ensure a healthy, parasite-free environment. A parasitic infection not only weakens a single animal but could spread through an entire population.
While the idea of preserving parasites no doubt appears to betray the idea of supporting an endangered species, despite the risk of illness or even death, parasites can provide critical long-term immunological benefits that are key to a species’ survival.
“Exposure to parasites in early life can confer improved resistance to the same parasites later on,” said Hamish Spencer of the University of Otago in New Zealand, “and recent research shows that such exposure may enhance the overall development and efficacy of the immune system in defending against a wide variety of infections.”
The loss of these parasites threatens the long-term survival of endangered species, particularly with any efforts to reintroduce them into a natural habitat. As much as they may threaten an individual’s health, parasites play an important ecological role.
According to a 2011 study published in Biological Conservation, parasitism is the most common life strategy on Earth. “t least 76,000 parasitic species inhabit the nearly 45,000 species of described vertebrate hosts,” the authors write. Ignoring such a major player within any ecosystem threatens the success of other species with which the parasites coevolved.
The evolution of the relationship between a parasite and its host over time also has implications for whole networks of species. In the same way that the food web transfers energy across species and affects animal populations, the integration of parasites and host animals within the same ecosystem affects growth, reproduction and long-term survival.
Read more at Discovery News
No comments:
Post a Comment