Proceedings of the Vertebrate Pest Conference

To fulfill the primary objective of the Vector-Borne Disease Section of the National Communicable Disease Center (CDC) − to reduce the incidence of vector-borne diseases − a series of courses on vertebrates and arthropods and their role as reservoirs, vectors, and disease-causing agents is presented. Literature is prepared and a museum is maintained. One of these courses, Epizootic Ecology, illustrates some of the aspects dealt with in these courses. Definitions and concepts are presented followed by a brief review of principles of epidemiology and ecology. Specific examples constitute the bulk of the course. One of these, tularemia, is especially useful for the purposes of this course in that it occurs in many nidal centers throughout the world, each nidus having different hosts, vectors, and cycles in nature, which affect man differently. The course concludes with a classroom discussion dealing with ecologically oriented control measures.