Yellow Fever Epidemic Causes Thousands of Primate Deaths In Brazil

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In the vast rainforests of Brazil, there has been a plague that has been ravaging the area killing almost 90% of a certain monkey population and is responsible for 900 human cases. Yellow fever is a viral disease that is found to be carried by infected mosquitoes.

Over the past few months, an outbreak has been recorded through eastern Brazil and the situation has been reported to be at Level Two Alert. Many travelers and residents are advised to practice enhanced precautions in order to contain the illness. Some rural residents have already been infected with the virus. However, some monkeys are reported to be even more sensitive than the humans and die faster.

The species affected most by yellow fever is the Brown Howler Monkey, Science Daily reported. It has been discovered that the fever was caused by a virus originating from Africa, brought by the colonists into the Americas. In humans, thedifferent symptoms of yellow fever usually take three to six days to show up and may include chills, fever and muscle aches. The fever can lead to bleeding, organ failure, shock, and oftentimes may result in death.

There are currently about 400 cases of humans getting infected by yellow fever and at least 150 deaths have been recorded. As of today, yellow fever virus has been spreading from forest to forest even those that are as far as 100 meters. Many scientists are baffled on how the virus is able to transfer from one forest to another as the disease should be contained due to the land-locked state of the island and affected primates should have been isolated, as stated by Science Times. Scientists are now noticing the difference in the forest, saying that the areas have now become quieter as if the life was sucked out of the place.