What fossils reveal about the protozoa progenitors, geographic provinces, and early hosts of malarial organisms
In 1991, Robert S. Desowitz asked, “Did the primitive malaria begin as a parasite of some prehistoric reptile that later was picked up by a mosquito, or was it first a parasite of the mosquito that later became established in the reptile?” This question has been debated for years and is addressed in the present work in light of the fossil record of malarial organisms (Haemosporidia).