Apparent failure and cryptic success of disease control via intermediate host population reduction
Nadia Raytselis, Maya Risin, Layla Steinbock, Logan T. Story, Jane Miller, Ta’Nyia Heard, Kevin Xie, Ella Rintala, Inesha Gupta, Stephanie Gutierrez, Alexander T. Strauss, David James Civitello
The paper evaluates the effectiveness of reducing intermediate copepod host populations to control Guinea worm disease, finding that while total populations recover, infectious adults are suppressed, indicating cryptic success.
bioRxiv · Dec 12, 2025 · PreprintEcology