African Wildlife & Environment Issue 77 FINAL ISSUE

FAUNA, FLORA & WILDLIFE

physical contact, through intermediate hosts like wildlife or insects, or through the air. Most often, wildlife are carriers of these diseases, meaning that they are able to transmit the illness without experiencing symptoms themselves. Humans, however, carry no natural immunity to many of

Diseases (NICD), a division of the National Health Laboratory Service, confirmed the total number of COVID-19 cases in South Africa at 1 353 and 5 deaths as of 31 March 2020. This number has risen exponentially on a national scale in South Africa just as it has internationally. The resultant

economic meltdown has meant that many businesses have not recovered and the knock-on effect for all sectors will be felt for many years to come. Kate Burgess, who is a conservation intern with the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators (NCEL), said that zoonotic diseases, or zoonoses, are caused by the transfer of organisms to humans from non-human animals. Taking the form of bacteria, viruses, parasites, or fungi, these 'germs' can be spread to humans through direct

these diseases, and thus are often placed at high risk of serious illness or death. Zoonotic diseases, including the COVID-19 pandemic, are on the rise because of climate change, loss of habitat including deforestation, and wildlife trafficking. Humans have exacerbated the spread of zoonotic illnesses through the sale of wild animals in seafood and live animal markets, such as in Wuhan, China, where the new COVID-19 strain of coronavirus is thought to have originated. These 'wet markets' have allowed for direct contact with disease-

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