Habitat availability alters the relative risk of a bovine tuberculosis breakdown in the aftermath of a commercial forest clearfell disturbance

1. Human modification of landscapes and associated disturbances may facilitate the emergence and spread of zoonotic diseases. Policy-makers need better understanding of the link between anthropogenic disturbances and wildlife disease hosts at the interface of human society and the natural environment, e.g. agriculture, forestry and aquaculture. Empirical research is strongly needed for the control of novel zoonoses which might emerge, as well as the management of existing zoonoses with significant economic repercussions such as bovine tuberculosis (bTB).
2. We aimed to examine the link between ecological disturbance and relative bTB risk using Ireland as a case study. We analysed clearfell forestry operations and assessed bTB breakdowns within cattle farms across different spatio-temporal scales over multiple years, examining how ecological conditions may modulate this relationship using conditional logistic regression models.
3. We found a significant effect of the interaction between...