Pests
Photo: Modeha, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
- Wikivoyage articles have a Stay healthy section with location-specific advice. This article contains general information relevant to many destinations.
Travellers may encounter animal pests that they are not familiar with in their home regions. Pests can spoil food and water, cause irritation, or in a worse case cause allergic reactions, spread manure and venom, or transmit infections. Infectious diseases themselves, or dangerous animals that can injure or kill people by force, do not usually qualify as pests. There is a separate article on poisonous plants.
PrepareThose who sleep with dogs will rise with fleas.
BugsArthropods are a giant group of (mostly) tiny critters that contains basically anything with more than 4 legs and an exoskeleton.
BirdsBirds such as pigeons, sparrows, gulls and crows can be a nuisance in cities and resorts, as they steal food from visitors, excrete manure, and might spread diseases.
JellyfishJellyfish are found the world over in many shapes and sizes. Some are harmless but many are venomous and will sting you. A few species can kill a human – quick treatment may be essential.
LeechesLeeches are generally found in wet conditions. They catch on to you as you are brushing by plants, or attach to shoes in puddles. They will crawl to find bare skin, and attach to extract blood from you.
RodentsRats, mice and other rodents are as prolific as humans; rats have colonized the world during the last centuries as stowaways on ships.
SnakesSnakes are covered in our article on Dangerous snakes.
See also
Sources and licences
- Guide text adapted from the Wikivoyage article "Pests" by its contributors, available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read on Wikivoyage · Contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo: Modeha, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons