Question

Describe the biological exchange between Europe and the Americas that took place in the century after contact.

Answer 1

New foods, animals, and drugs were among the items exchanged between Europe and the Americas that took place in the century after contact. The Great Biological Exchange took place when the Europeans first contacted the New World and plants, animals, diseases, and ideas were spread. The Europeans saw an alpaca, llama, or guinea pigs which were all so common in the New World. The Native Americans did not know about the; horses, pigs, goats, cattle, and maybe even chickens. Despite this, in under a century, some areas drastically changed from farmlands to grazing grounds. However, the transmission of infectious disease from Europe and Africa to the Americas was the most significant aspect. Since the natives had no natural immunity built up to these Old World pathogens, diseases like smallpox and typhus exploded into a pandemic never seen before. In central Mexico, more than 8 million natives died as a result of the Spanish arrival