This open access book identifies and discusses biodiversity’s contribution to physical, mental and spiritual health and wellbeing. Furthermore, the book identifies the implications of this relationship for nature conservation, public health, landscape architecture and urban planning – and considers the opportunities of nature-based solutions for climate change adaptation. This transdisciplinary book will attract a wide audience interested in biodiversity, ecology, resource management, public health, psychology, urban planning, and landscape architecture. The emphasis is on multiple human health benefits from biodiversity - in particular with respect to the increasing challenge of climate change. This makes the book unique to other books that focus either on biodiversity and physical health or natural environments and mental wellbeing. The book is written as a definitive ‘go-to’ book for those who are new to the field of biodiversity and health.

This book gathers contributions by 39 international specialists on well-known but neglected mosquito-borne diseases. The authors highlight pathogens that are increasingly being spread worldwide by various mosquito species, a situation worsened further by migration and tourism. The book addresses significant agents of diseases like AIDS, dengue, Zika virus, malaria and even cancer, and the risk of transmission via mosquito-related vectors. In addition, it examines important means of preventing the outbreak of related diseases by using insecticides and/or repellents. A particular focus is on the unique and sophisticated mouthparts of bloodsucking species, which allow them to feed on blood in an undisturbed manner, and by means of which agents of disease can enter potential human and animal hosts. In brief, the book provides a broad range of information for a wide readership, including graduates, teachers and researchers in the fields of parasitology, virology, tropical medicine and microbiology, as well as practitioners and healthcare officials.

An important reference detailing the distribution, prevalence and incidence of vector- and rodent-borne diseases in Europe, USA and Canada.

Population Biology of Vector-Borne Diseases is the first comprehensive survey of this rapidly developing field. The chapter topics provide an up-to-date presentation of classical concepts, reviews of emerging trends, synthesis of existing knowledge, and a prospective agenda for future research. The contributions offer authoritative and international perspectives from leading thinkers in the field. The dynamics of vector-borne diseases are far more intrinsically ecological compared with their directly transmitted equivalents. The environmental dependence of ectotherm vectors means that vector-borne pathogens are acutely sensitive to changing environmental conditions. Although perennially important vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue have deeply informed our understanding of vector-borne diseases, recent emerging viruses such as West Nile virus, Chikungunya virus, and Zika virus have generated new scientific questions and practical problems. The study of vector-borne disease has been a particularly rich source of ecological questions, while ecological theory has provided the conceptual tools for thinking about their evolution, transmission, and spatial extent. Population Biology of Vector-Borne Diseases is an advanced textbook suitable for graduate level students taking courses in vector biology, population ecology, evolutionary ecology, disease ecology, medical entomology, viral ecology/evolution, and parasitology, as well as providing a key reference for researchers across these fields.

An in-depth overview on the demo-graphic changes occurring world-wide and the repercussions this is having on the pattern of vector-borne disease is pre-sented in this book. Internationally recognized scientists, epidemiologists, entomologists, parasitologists, and ecologists are contributing authors to this comprehensive account.

Approx.500 pagesApprox.500 pages

Vector-Borne Diseases - Recent Developments in Epidemiology and Control utilizes the unique capabilities of open-access publishing to share exciting developments in the biology, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases spread by arthropods. From malaria to dengue to leishmaniasis, the diseases addressed in this book continue to present threats to the life and well-being of millions around the world. The international cast of writers published here provide specific insight into a full spectrum of diseases spread by insects and their close relatives.