Editing Parasitism (section)

=== Transmission strategies ===

[[File:Entamoeba histolytica life cycle-en.svg|thumb|upright=1.7<!--format for legibility of multi-image diagram-->|[[Biological life cycle|Life cycle]] of ''[[Entamoeba histolytica]]'', an anaerobic parasitic protozoan transmitted by the [[fecal–oral route]]]]

Parasites use a variety of methods to infect animal hosts, including physical contact, the [[fecal–oral route]], free-living infectious stages, and vectors, suiting their differing hosts, life cycles, and ecological contexts.<ref name=Godfrey2013>{{cite journal |last=Godfrey |first=Stephanie S. |title=Networks and the ecology of parasite transmission: A framework for wildlife parasitology |journal=Wildlife |date=December 2013 |volume=2 |pages=235–245 |doi=10.1016/j.ijppaw.2013.09.001 |pmid=24533342 |pmc=3862525|bibcode=2013IJPPW...2..235G }}</ref> Examples to illustrate some of the many possible combinations are given in the table.

{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Examples of transmission methods in different ecological contexts<ref name=Godfrey2013/>
! Parasite !! Host !! Transmission method !! Ecological context
|-
|''[[Gyrodactylus turnbulli]]''<br/>(a [[monogenean]]) ||''[[Poecilia reticulata]]''<br/>(guppy) ||physical contact ||social behaviour
|-
|[[Nematode]]s<br/>e.g. ''[[Strongyloides]]'' ||''[[Macaca fuscata]]''<br/>(Japanese macaque) ||fecal–oral ||
social behaviour<br/>(grooming)
|-
|''[[Heligmosomoides polygyrus]]''<br/>(a nematode) ||''[[Apodemus flavicollis]]''<br/>(yellow-necked mouse) ||fecal–oral ||sex-biased transmission<br/>(mainly to males)
|-
|''[[Amblyomma]]''<br/>(a tick) ||''[[Sphenodon punctatus]]''<br/>(tuatara) ||free-living infectious stages ||social behaviour
|-
|''[[Plasmodium]]''<br/>([[malaria]] parasite) ||[[Bird]]s, [[mammal]]s<br/>(inc. humans) ||''[[Anopheles]]'' mosquito vector,<br/>attracted by odour of<br/>infected human host<ref name="de Boer2017">{{cite journal |last1=de Boer |first1=Jetske G. |last2=Robinson |first2=Ailie |last3=Powers |first3=Stephen J. |last4=Burgers |first4=Saskia L. G. E. |last5=Caulfield |first5=John C. |last6=Birkett |first6=Michael A. |last7=Smallegange |first7=Renate C. |last8=van Genderen |first8=Perry J. J. |last9=Bousema |first9=Teun |last10=Sauerwein |first10=Robert W. |last11=Pickett |first11=John A. |last12=Takken |first12=Willem |last13=Logan |first13=James G. |title=Odours of Plasmodium falciparum-infected participants influence mosquito–host interactions |journal=Scientific Reports |volume=7 |issue=1 |pages=9283 |date=August 2017 |doi=10.1038/s41598-017-08978-9|pmid=28839251 |pmc=5570919 |bibcode=2017NatSR...7.9283D }}</ref> ||— 
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