I wonder if, given enough distance, this is actually a really good way to avoid deceases.
Burying or burning is a good "rite" or meme, that will avoid many deceases. In the way that it favours cultures who dispose of their dead this way, have a benefit over those who leave them "lying around", so to say.
Would a sky-burial work similar? Or does that simply spread the risk of contamination over a large area that it only helps cultures in really sparse areas?
Vultures play a critical role in disease control and waste removal. They are actually one of the most important scavengers in Africa and are believed to consume even more carrion than mammalian scavengers like hyenas. Vultures also eat rapidly and feed in large groups which allows them to consume carrion quickly. This reduces the risk of disease spread from flies or bacteria. Vultures are resistant to many diseases so they don’t contract or spread diseases like tuberculosis or brucellosis even if the animals they are consuming died from those causes.
Maybe Tibetan Buddhists, who feed their dead to vultures as a form of burial, are on to something.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sky_burial
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2376190/Chopped-fed...