More rain, more virus

摘要

Precipitation levels and species biodiversity may affect humans' exposure to zoonotic diseases -those carried by other animals. Hantavirus, which is carried by wild rodents, especially deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus, pictured), causes severe lung disease in humans. The prevalence of the Sin Nombre variant of hantavirus, which is endemic in deer mice on California's Channel Islands, is affected by several ecological factors.