Birds buffer against virus North American scientists studying
West Nile virus have shown that more diverse bird populations
can help to buffer people against infection. Since the virus
first spread to North America it has reached epidemic
proportions and claimed over 1,100 human lives. “This is an
important example of the links between biodiversity and human
health”, commented Dr Stuart Butchart, BirdLife's Global
Research and Indicators Coordinator. Biodiversity is
increasingly being recognised as socially and economically
important because of the valuable services it provides. The
authors of this latest research - John Swaddle and Stavros Calos
- highlighted the “increasing evidence for economically valuable
ecosystem services provided by biodiversity”. West Nile virus
mainly affects birds but can be transferred to humans via
mosquitoes. It first spread to North America in 2002, and since
that time it has reached an epidemic scale with over 28,000
human cases – including 1,100 deaths - being reported. The c