Multispecies entanglements in the virosphere: Rethinking the Anthropocene in light of the 2019 coronavirus outbreak

Abstract

In this essay, we reevaluate the 2019 outbreak of a novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) from the perspective of multispecies entanglements. It is argued that anthropogenic alterations in the biosphere will most likely accelerate the rate of multispecies pandemics in the Anthropocene. Using a textual analysis approach of anthropological and historical sources on the example of coronaviruses and live animal markets in China, we trace how the virosphere of wild animals from tropical regions comes into contact with the virosphere of humans and farmed animals in highly industrialized landscapes. We suggest that adopting a multispecies perspective on viruses can allow them to be understood as living processes that interact with other species in a realm called the virosphere. The rate at which novel infectious diseases are transmitted by bacteria and viruses has increased in recent decades. We argue that this is caused by side effects of the Anthropocene, such as deforestation, the surge in population growth and density, and anthropogenic climate change, which give rise to an increased number of unusual encounters between humans, nonhuman companion species, and wild animals. In this way, the virospheres of host organisms, which were formerly partly isolated, are allowed to converge and freely exchange infectious diseases, leading to a more homogenized virosphere. As anthropogenic alterations are set to continue in the future, we suggest that multispecies pandemics will likely increase in the following decades.

The Ethnographic Quest in the Midst of COVID-19

“…Like the recent SARS-CoV-2, a myriad of diseases has been the primary cause of the annihilation of part of humanity around the globe. In the Americas, for instance, European colonialism triggered the contact of dissimilar virospheres ( Aronsson & Holm, 2022 ), causing the spread of pathogens and, subsequently, the near extermination of indigenous peoples ( Crosby, 1972 ; Myers, 1988 ; Newson, 1996 ). Amazonian societies' reminiscences corroborate their suffering from smallpox, measles, and malaria as documented among the Yanomami ( Rifkin, 1994 ; Rival, 2021 ), the Urarina ( Fabiano, 2022 ), and the Cariban-speaking indigenous peoples of Eastern Guiana ( Duin, 2021 ), to mention a few.…”

“…Amazonian societies' reminiscences corroborate their suffering from smallpox, measles, and malaria as documented among the Yanomami ( Rifkin, 1994 ; Rival, 2021 ), the Urarina ( Fabiano, 2022 ), and the Cariban-speaking indigenous peoples of Eastern Guiana ( Duin, 2021 ), to mention a few. It is also worthwhile mentioning that the acceleration of anthropogenic activities driven by the modern conceit of predatory supremacy and the inexhaustible logic of nature’s exploitation has caused the emergence of the virus (see Aronsson & Holm, 2022 ; Fuentes, 2020 ; Kirksey, 2020 ; van Dooren, 2020 ). Incongruously, our hyper-consumerist society is well aware that we must renounce some of the cherished hedonistic comforts of consumerism facilitated by global capitalism to prevent the virus’s spread.…”

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Physicians Regarding Vaccinations in Yerevan, Armenia: A Case Study of HPV

“…Armenia has consistently displayed lower levels of vaccine confidence than surrounding countries and Europe as a whole [ 1 , 2 , 3 ], with Armenians showing low levels of trust in vaccines being safe, effective and/or important [ 1 ]. This has significant implications for control and prevention of vaccine-controllable diseases and presents a challenge in that the frequency of novel diseases, for which new vaccines need to be developed, is predicted to increase during the 21st century [ 4 ], risking further pandemics such as that caused by COVID-19 [ 5 ]. In this paper, we use the introduction of the HPV vaccine Gardasil in Yerevan, Armenia as a case study for understanding vaccine hesitancy in Armenia more broadly, particularly with regard to the introduction of new vaccines, and for shedding light on some key underlying reasons for hesitancy.…”

Reflections on the SARS-Covid-2 pandemic after one year: predictable, preventable but inevitable: an ecologist’s perspective

“…Humans are fragmenting and destroying vast tracts of natural ecosystems across the biosphere, actions that not only are wreaking havoc on biodiversity, food webs and ecosystem functions, but at the same time are bringing increasing numbers of people into much closer contact with species that were once insulated from human communities (Daszak et al 2001). Nature is represented by a veritable labyrinthine network of ecological complexity that is inexorably connected through a chain of cause-and-effect relationships (Quammen 2012;Aronsson, Holm 2020). Most importantly, natural ecosystems into which humans are increasingly making incursions are literally brimming with pathogens, many of which are viruses that have to potential to infect us directly (like smallpox and polio), or via zoonotic transfer, via another species (i.e.…”