No evidence for persistent natural plague reservoirs in historical and modern Europe

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 119; no. 51; pp. 1 - 8
• Main Authors: Stenseth, Nils Chr, Tao, Yuxin, Zhang, Chutian, Bramanti, Barbara, Büntgen, Ulf, Cong, Xianbin, Cui, Yujun, Zhou, Hu, Dawson, Lorna A., Mooney, Sacha J., Li, Dong, Fell, Henry G., Cohn, Samuel, Sebbane, Florent, Slavin, Philip, Liang, Wannian, Tong, Howell, Yang, Ruifu, Xu, Lei
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States National Academy of Sciences 20.12.2022; The National Academy of Sciences
• Subjects: Biological Sciences; Bubonic plague; Climate; Disease Reservoirs; Environmental conditions; Europe; Humans; Pandemics - history; Plague - epidemiology; Plague - history; Reservoirs; Rodents; Soil; Soil characteristics; Soil properties; Soil texture; Soils; Statistical methods; Texture; Wildlife; Yersinia pestis; Europe; United States > US; rodent diversity; natural plague reservoirs; environmental conditions; Europe; Yersinia pestis

Caused by Yersinia pestis, plague ravaged the world through three known pandemics: the First or the Justinianic (6th–8th century); the Second (beginning with the Black Death during c.1338–1353 and lasting until the 19th century); and the Third (which became global in 1894). It is debatable whether Y...