Human & Ecological Health Stories

Scientists continue to uncover surprising connections between our own health and that of the environment around us. The Anthropocene provides rigorous reporting on cutting-edge research—for example, how urban biodiversity can cut down on the prevalence of allergies and how industrial pollution may contribute to antibiotic resistance.

Study ties amphibian collapses with increased malaria outbreaks

If you remove frogs and other "mosquito-reducers" from the landscape, what happens to malaria rates?

Dimming the sun could expose 1 billion more people to malaria

A new study illustrates how geoengineering doesn’t just turn back the clock on climate change, it alters the climate in new and perhaps profound ways

Farmers wiped out habitat to reduce disease from wildlife. For birds, their efforts backfired.

New study finds that birds caught on California farms with nearby wildlands had less problem bacteria than those at more manicured farms.

Think SARS-CoV-2 is just hitting humans? Add hundreds of species to high-risk list.

More than 500 mammal species are high-risk candidates for carrying the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID, based on a new study of common traits among species with a protein gateway for the virus.

Clean air policies are for the birds

According to a new estimate, reducing ozone pollution has saved 1.5 billion birds over the past 40 years.

Letting Biodiversity Get Under Our Skin

Some aspects of dirty living can be healthy. A new study posits that the decline of plant and animal diversity in cities may be linked to the recent surge of allergies and other chronic inflammatory diseases.

Pandemic might get people to drop wild meat from the menu

A survey of thousands in Asian countries found people with a high awareness of Covid-19 were more likely to cut back on consuming wild meat. A conservation group wants to harness this to put a dent in the wildlife trade.