http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history From the rats that unleashed the Black Plague on 14th-century Europe to the mosquitoes that continue to infect millions with malaria each year, these pesky creatures have played a decisive role in shaping human history. en Copyright 2013, History.com Sat, 25 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT History.com 2013-05-25T04:00:00Z en Copyright 2013, History.com http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo1 Besides terrorizing many a rodent-phobe, rats have served as vehicles for various human diseases throughout history. Along with fleas, they have been responsible for numerous outbreaks of the bubonic plague. http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo1 http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo2 Together, fleas and the rats they feed on have unleashed countless scourges on human civilization. Perhaps most famously, they contributed to the spread of a deadly plague in 14th-century Europe. http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo2 http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo3 Believed to have been an outbreak of the bubonic plague, the Black Death wreaked havoc on Europe, North Africa and Central Asia in the mid-14th century. It killed an estimated 75 million people, including 30 to 60 percent of Europe's population. http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo3 http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo4 Like the Black Death, the so-called Plague of Justinian was an epidemic (most likely of the bubonic plague) with major political and cultural consequences. Modern historians named it after its most famous survivor, Justinian I, who reigned over the Eastern Roman Empire from 527 to 565. http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo4 http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo5 Notorious for carrying human disease, lice have triggered and spread a number of epidemic typhus outbreaks at decisive moments in history. The disease, which tends to strike during periods of conflict and famine, killed millions during the Thirty Years' War and World War I. http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo5 http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo6 Typhus and other lice-borne diseases shaped the outcome of Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia in 1812, wiping out hundreds of thousands of his soldiers and forcing the French army's retreat. http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo6 http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo7 The vector for many infectious diseases, mosquitoes are best known for carrying malaria and yellow fever. These ailments, which continue to affect millions worldwide, have had significant effects on human health and the world economy for centuries. http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo7 http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo8 Before the United States began building the Panama Canal in 1904, an earlier attempt by the French was derailed by pervasive malaria and yellow fever. The American plan included extensive efforts to control mosquitoes, which had just been identified as the diseases' carrier. http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo8 http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo9 The Rocky Mountain locust was the bane of homesteaders in the western United States until the late 19th century, traveling in massive swarms that blackened the skies and destroyed crops. The cause of their sudden disappearance is unknown. http://www.history.com/photos/pests-that-changed-history/photo9