在佛罗里达州，受疱疹感染的猴子数量正在增加，而且并没有阻止它们的计划

在佛罗里达州，受疱疹感染的猴子数量正在增加，而且并没有阻止它们的计划

A group of invasive herpes-carrying monkeys is expanding its range in central Florida and officials have yet to put a management plan in place to mitigate and control their spread.

一群携带疱疹病毒的侵入性猴子正在佛罗里达州中部扩大活动范围，官员们还没有制定管理计划来减缓和控制它们的扩散。

Rhesus macaques have been making headlines in the sunshine state ever since their inaugural appearance at Silver Springs State Park (SSSP) in the 1930s. At the time, a boat operator released 18 individuals on an island to bolster local tourism, not knowing they could swim to surrounding areas, according to the University of Florida. But now, the charismatic primates appear to be spreading beyond their initial grounds without a plan in place to mitigate their impact. Just a few weeks ago, a monkey “showed up” in Jacksonville, Florida. Others have been spotted along the northeast coast of Florida

自从上世纪30年代，恒河猴首次出现在银泉州立公园(SSSP)以来，它们就一直是这个阳光之州的头条新闻。据佛罗里达大学(University of Florida)称，当时，一名船主为了促进当地旅游业，在一个岛上释放了18人，却不知道他们可以游到周边地区。但现在，这种有魅力的灵长类动物似乎正在它们最初的领地之外蔓延，却没有一个适当的计划来减轻它们的影响。就在几周前，一只猴子“出现”在佛罗里达州的杰克逊维尔。在佛罗里达的东北海岸也发现了一些

“My guess is that a monkey that has left one of the established groups has set off on its own, and that sort of thing may be more and more common, creating more and more potential for human interaction,” Dr Steve A. Johnson, associate professor at the Department of Wildlife Ecology & Conservation at the University of Florida, told IFLScience in an interview.

“我的猜测是，一只离开了某个已建立的群体的猴子开始了自己的活动，这类事情可能会越来越普遍，为人类互动创造越来越多的潜力，”佛罗里达大学野生动物生态与保护系副教授Steve A. Johnson博士在接受IFLScience采访时表示。

Macaca mulatta are highly adaptable and can thrive in a number of environments, often wreaking havoc when introduced to new habitats. Thousands of macaques released on Morgan Island, South Carolina, for biomedical research elevated the risk of E. coli and the introduction of the monkeys in the Florida Keys destroyed red mangroves, leading to shoreline erosion. In central Florida today, macaques are known to eat eggs from native bird nests, as well as eat around 50 native plant species, and frequent coastal environments during the weekend when recreational boaters show up to illegally feed them.

猕猴适应能力强，能在多种环境中茁壮成长，当它们被引入新的栖息地时，往往会造成严重破坏。数千只猕猴被放生在南卡罗来纳州的摩根岛，用于生物医学研究，这增加了大肠杆菌的风险，而在佛罗里达群岛引入的猕猴破坏了红树林，导致了海岸线的侵蚀。如今，在佛罗里达州中部，猕猴以本地鸟巢里的蛋为食，还以大约50种本地植物为食。周末，当游船上的游船客非法给它们喂食时，它们经常出没于沿海地区。

The macaques also carry herpes B virus.

猕猴也携带B型疱疹病毒。

“We know that [the monkeys] carry herpes B virus and we know that herpes B virus is lethal in people, so that sets up the possibility that if the population increases and they interact with people more, someone may be hurt,” said Johnson, adding that there is a low risk and likelihood that such interaction would occur, but such incidents would carry with them a high consequence. Herpes B in humans can degrade one's quality of life, present neurological issues, and prove fatal.

“我们知道猴子携带了B型疱疹病毒，我们也知道B型疱疹病毒对人类是致命的，所以这就造成了一种可能性，如果种群数量增加，它们与人类的接触增多，就可能有人受伤。”约翰逊说，这样的互动发生的风险和可能性很低，但这样的事件会带来很高的后果。B型疱疹会降低人的生活质量，出现神经系统问题，甚至致命。

Figure 6. Rhesus macaque in an aggressive stance to a woman attempting to feed it. Jane Anderson/University of Florida

It is unknown whether herpes B can spread to people in the wild. Despite 18 reports of macaque bites or scratches in Florida, there has not been a single monkey-to-person transmission in the state. However, there are some 50 cases of human herpes B virus infections from macaques in laboratory settings, almost exclusively from bites and scratches from infected animals – half of these cases were fatal. Any risk of exposure to the potentially fatal pathogen should prompt management plans to limit the transmission of the virus, advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

目前还不清楚B型疱疹是否会在野外传播给人类。尽管佛罗里达州有18起猕猴咬伤或抓伤的报告，但该州还没有一例猴传人病例。然而，在实验室环境中，大约有50例人类B型疱疹病毒感染来自猕猴，几乎全部来自受感染动物的咬伤和抓伤——这些病例中有一半是致命的。美国疾病控制与预防中心建议说，任何接触这种可能致命的病原体的风险都应该促使管理部门制定计划，限制病毒的传播。

But Johnson says that there is currently no management plan in place. Between 1998 and 2012, a private trapper sponsored by the government caught more than 800 monkeys in the SSSP area to be sold to research facilities, but public outcry soon halted the operation. Today, the population continues to increase with between 200 and 300 individuals in the 1,860-hectare park (4,600 acres), and without a plan in place, researchers estimate that the population will double from its 2015 population by 2022.

但是约翰逊说，目前还没有适当的管理计划。从1998年到2012年，一个由政府赞助的私人猎人在SSSP地区捕捉了800多只猴子，准备卖给研究机构，但公众的强烈抗议很快就停止了这项行动。如今，这个占地1860公顷(4600英亩)的公园的人口还在继续增长，大约有200到300人。如果没有一个适当的计划，研究人员估计，到2022年，公园的人口将比2015年翻一番。

“It’s a challenge and I’m hoping that through all of this attention the general public realizes that while [the monkeys] are cute and it’s not their fault that they are there, they are there and they are carrying a disease that is potentially fatal to people,” said Johnson. “They are not native and they shouldn’t be here.”

“这是一个挑战，我希望通过所有这些关注，让公众意识到虽然猴子很可爱，它们在那里不是它们的错，它们在那里，携带着一种对人类可能致命的疾病，”约翰逊说。“它们不是本地的，不应该在这里。”

Florida has the most non-native wildlife species introduction of any state, and the management and mitigation of those species cost more than $500 million annually. Macaques aren’t the only primates in the state either; Florida is also home to established populations of squirrel and vervet monkeys, as well as Burmese pythons and other invasive reptiles, as well as feral cats and pigs.

佛罗里达州是引进外来野生物种最多的州，而管理和减少这些物种的成本每年超过5亿美元。猕猴也不是该州唯一的灵长类动物;佛罗里达也是松鼠和长尾猴、缅甸巨蟒和其他侵入性爬行动物、野猫和猪的聚居地。

A juvenile rhesus macaque consuming vegetation in Silver Springs State Park. Jane Anderson/University of Florida