sylvatic
adjective
syl·vat·ic
sil-ˈva-tik 
1
: sylvan
sylvatic rodents
2
: occurring in or affecting wild animals
sylvatic diseases
Examples of sylvatic in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Pigs, rats, and dogs are the beasts most commonly implicated as hosts in the domestic sphere, but more exotic animals such as wild boar, walrus, and polar bear may also serve in the sylvatic or wild animal cycle of Trichinella.
—
Rebecca Kreston, Discover Magazine, 25 Dec. 2016
Shortly after, a new threat arose when a spread of sylvatic plague nearly wiped out the remaining ferrets, spreading from the prairie dogs the ferrets prey on.
—Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 21 July 2022
Added genetic diversity could help protect the population from diseases such as sylvatic plague and canine distemper that periodically slash its numbers, reports Mead Gruver for the Associated Press.
—Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Feb. 2021
All ferrets reintroduced so far are the descendants of just seven closely related animals — genetic similarity that makes today’s ferrets potentially susceptible to intestinal parasites and diseases such as sylvatic plague.
—NBC News, 19 Feb. 2021
The lack of genetic diversity is a concern for scientists, however: Genetic similarity would make the new ferrets potentially susceptible to intestinal parasites and diseases such as sylvatic plague.
—Peter Aitken, Fox News, 19 Feb. 2021
Diseases like sylvatic plague wiped out the ferrets that the biologists left behind.
—Theresa MacHemer, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Jan. 2021
Most of those rare animals were then lost to disease, including sylvatic plague, the animal version of the Black Death that has plagued humans.
—Jonel Aleccia, Quartz, 23 Dec. 2020
Rebecca Kreston, Discover Magazine, 25 Dec. 2016
Shortly after, a new threat arose when a spread of sylvatic plague nearly wiped out the remaining ferrets, spreading from the prairie dogs the ferrets prey on.
—Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 21 July 2022
Added genetic diversity could help protect the population from diseases such as sylvatic plague and canine distemper that periodically slash its numbers, reports Mead Gruver for the Associated Press.
—Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Feb. 2021
All ferrets reintroduced so far are the descendants of just seven closely related animals — genetic similarity that makes today’s ferrets potentially susceptible to intestinal parasites and diseases such as sylvatic plague.
—NBC News, 19 Feb. 2021
The lack of genetic diversity is a concern for scientists, however: Genetic similarity would make the new ferrets potentially susceptible to intestinal parasites and diseases such as sylvatic plague.
—Peter Aitken, Fox News, 19 Feb. 2021
Diseases like sylvatic plague wiped out the ferrets that the biologists left behind.
—Theresa MacHemer, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Jan. 2021
Most of those rare animals were then lost to disease, including sylvatic plague, the animal version of the Black Death that has plagued humans.
—Jonel Aleccia, Quartz, 23 Dec. 2020
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sylvatic.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Sylvatic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sylvatic. Accessed 26 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
sylvatic
adjective
syl·vat·ic
sil-ˈvat-ik
: occurring in, affecting, or transmitted by wild animals
sylvatic diseases
sylvatic yellow fever
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