ZOONOTIC TRANSMISSION BETWEEN WILDLIFE AND DOMESTIC ANIMALS IN AGROFORESTRY LANDSCAPES

Abstract

 In dynamic and ecologically dynamic agroforestry environments, zoonotic diseases that originate in the wildlife and are transmitted to domestic animals are a major risk.  The study applied the mixed-methods One Health approach to examine the way in which diseases are transmitted between animals and humans in such locations. That is, it did this through molecular diagnostics, spatial risk modelling and stakeholder interviews.  The sample size was 1800 domestic animals and interviewed species of the wildlife over a period of one year. Faeces, blood, and nosal fluid  Mapping of places revealed that most of the pathogens were found in places where forest was more fragmented, where there existed shared sources of water and where herds of livestock congregated.  A generalised linear model showed that the density of domestic animals (beta equals 0.72 p less then 0.01), the density of forest edges (beta equals 0.61 p less then 0.05), and the distance to human settlements (beta equals 0.59 p less then 0.05) were good indicators of the presence of zoonotic.  A thematic analysis of 45 interviews revealed that individuals were not familiar with risk of zoonotic hazards and that interspecies contact becomes more common during summer and that individuals allowed their animals to graze through wildlife corridors.  This triangulated study demonstrates that agroforestry regions are hot pots of zoonotic emergence due to it ecological permeability and Socio-economic behaviours.  The combined approach is effective to demonstrate the interactions of biological, geographical and behavioural factors to influence the likelihood of the disease.  In the study, it is demonstrated that the application of transdisciplinary methods is significant in addressing zoonoses at the human-animal-environmental interface. It also indicates the necessity of applying the method of wildlife surveillance, farmer education, or geographical buffer strategies in preventing further outbreaks.