2 ms·
I wonder how much danger there is of the worm finding a new host species. I mean an animal other than dog and possibly harder to control. That would be a disast
by praptak 10y ago
I wonder how much danger there is of the worm finding a new host species. I mean an animal other than dog and possibly harder to control. That would be a disastrous outcome.
- lovemenot 10y agoLittle danger, I guess. The eradication program introduces no new evolutionary pressure on worms' lavae living in water. Those filtered out or killed in their hosts are removed from the gene pool anyway. On the other hand, we may discover more such preexisting hosts, as dogs. A parasitic relationship that evolved over a much longer period than a few mere decades and evolving from a much larger population than the few individuals thought to remain in the wild.
- appleflaxen 10y ago> introduces no new evolutionary pressure on worms' lavae living in water not being able to reproduce (by infecting a human, which is required in the reproductive cycle) is just as real of a new evolutionary pressure as dying is.