Question

Why do gut parasites increase in human populations in Africa when lion populations dwindle?

Answer 1

The gastrointestinal parasites are often carried by the non-human primates that are found to be shared between primates and humans.

The majority of the parasites that are identified are having high pathologic involvement in humans. This implicates that baboons are the potential reservoirs and source for human zoonotic parasitic infections.

The trophic cascade effect was noted in parts of Africa where leopard and lion populations have dwindled. This resulted in the alteration of the behavior patterns in olive baboons and caused them to increase contact with nearby humans in Africa. This increased contact resulted in increased intestinal parasites in both baboons and the people.

Therefore, the gut parasites increased in human populations in Africa when lion populations dwindle.