It’s an unfortunate reality that the Amazon rainforest is home to several vector-borne diseases—that is, diseases transmitted to humans by other animals. (Let me be clear, by “animals,” I mean members of the kingdom Animalia, not just mammals.)

The most common vectors are mosquitoes, and the most serious disease they transmit in the Amazon is malaria. Why am I bringing up vector-borne diseases in a blog about the rainforest?

Due to the fact that deforestation helps them spread. As forests are cleared, conditions often become more favorable for disease-carrying insects like mosquitoes. In other words, deforestation doesn’t just destroy ecosystems—it also contributes directly to human suffering and death (Gottwalt, 2013).

Reference:

Gottwalt, Allison. (November 3, 2013) Impacts of Deforestation on Vector-borne Disease Incidence The Columbia University Journal of Global Health

https://journals.library.columbia.edu/index.php/jgh/article/view/4864