Climate change and animal diseases in South America

Abstract

Climate strongly affects agriculture and livestock production and influences animal diseases, vectors and pathogens, and their habitat. Global warming trends predicted in the 2007 Intergovernmental Panel on Climatic Change (IPCC) report for South America are likely to change the temporal and geographical distribution of infectious diseases, including those that are vector-borne such as bluetongue, West Nile fever, vesicular stomatitis and New World screwworm. Changes in distribution will be partially modulated by El Nino Southern Oscillation events, which will become more frequent and lead to a greater frequency of droughts and floods.

Active disease surveillance for animal diseases in South America, particularly for vector-borne diseases, is very poor. Disease reporting is often lacking, which affects knowledge of disease distribution and impact, and preparedness for early response. Improved reporting for animal diseases that may be affected by climate change is needed for better prevention and intervention measures in susceptible livestock, wildlife and vectors in South America. This requires contributions from multidisciplinary experts, including meteorologists, epidemiologists, biologists and ecologists, and from local communities.