#73 Niraj and The Carcass Café: How Carrion Shapes Wildlife Disease Risk (Australia)

What if the biggest threat to Australia's wildlife during a disease outbreak might be lying dead in the bush? Join host Dr. Cat Vendl with Niraj Meisuria, a PhD student investigating one of disease ecology's most overlooked frontiers: scavenging and carcasses.

From wedge-tailed eagles brawling over kangaroo kills to brushtail possums turning carnivorous, Niraj reveals how carcasses act as ecological 'cafés', hotspots where wild dogs, dingoes, and domestic animals converge. His research in Cape York explores a sobering scenario: if rabies reaches Australia's remote north, could carcasses accelerate its spread through dingo populations?

Discover why pathogens can persist in carcasses for months—or even years—and why understanding these hidden disease pathways could be critical for Australia's biosecurity.

Links

Check out the website Niraj's Disease Ecology Lab at Sydney Uni here.

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