Controlling parasites that infect multiple host species often requires targeting single species
that dominate transmission. Yet, it is rarely recognised that such 'key hosts' can arise through …

Many parasites circulate endemically within communities of multiple host species. To
understand disease persistence within these communities, it is essential to know the …

In natural systems, individuals are often co-infected by many species of parasites. However,
the significance of interactions between species and the processes that shape within-host …

Understanding the role of biotic interactions in shaping natural communities is a long-
standing challenge in ecology. It is particularly pertinent to parasite communities sharing the …

Most host–parasite systems exhibit remarkable heterogeneity in the contribution to
transmission of certain individuals, locations, host infectious states, or parasite strains. While …

Infection heterogeneity is one of the most fundamental patterns in disease ecology, yet
surprisingly few studies have experimentally explored its underlying drivers. Here, we used …

Understanding the transmission and dynamics of infectious diseases in natural communities
requires understanding the extent to which the ecology, evolution and epidemiology of those …

While the importance of changes in host biodiversity for disease risk continues to gain
empirical support, the influence of natural variation in parasite diversity on epidemiological …

Community composition is driven by a few key assembly processes: ecological selection,
drift and dispersal. Nested parasite communities represent a powerful study system for …

Disease dynamics hinge on parasite transmission among hosts. However, canonical models
for transmission often fit data poorly, limiting predictive ability. One solution involves building …