Congo Ebola outbreak highlights risk of hunting, eating wild animals
The ongoing Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo underscores the risks associated with hunting and consuming wild animals. Despite the dangers, demand for bushmeat remains high in the region, complicating efforts to control the virus. Experts emphasize the need for education on the health risks linked to zoonotic diseases like Ebola.
- ▪The Congolese government has confirmed over 1,000 suspected Ebola cases, with at least 220 deaths since the outbreak was declared on May 15.
- ▪Ebola outbreaks are believed to start when the virus spills over into humans from infected animals, often during the handling and consumption of wild meat.
- ▪The current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, which has no approved treatments or vaccines.
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Open this photo in gallery:A vendor at the Masina market displays bushmeat for sale in Kinshasa, Congo. Ebola cases in Africa have been associated with hunting, butchering and processing meat from infected animals, the U.S. CDC has said.Samy Ntumba Shambuyi/The Associated PressShareSave for laterPlease log in to bookmark this story.Log InCreate Free AccountThe vendors of wild meat at the sprawling Masina Market in the Congolese capital don’t always display their goods openly. Customers must ask for whatever they’re looking for, whether it is a giant swamp rodent or the severed parts of an antelope.Others occasionally sell in the open, like the women who preside over impossibly large baskets of squirming caterpillars at the market in Kinshasa.For many in Congo and elsewhere in Central and…
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