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The paper presents data available in the literature on the natural foci of plague, tularemia, tick-borne spirochetosis, Crimean hemorrhagic fever, tick typhus, Q fever, zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis. The largest number of transmissible infections is shown to be in the natural areas of deserts and piedmont semiarid lands.

The fauna of fleas in the East Kisil-Kum includes 24 species. Different physicogeographic regions of sands are characterized by different spectra and number of species of fleas. The greatest share in collections is composed by Xenopsylla gerbilli caspica--the parasite of Rhombomys opimus. In autumn the other parasite of this rodent, Coptopsylla lamellifer, is a mass species. All the most significant and long changes in the number of these species are associated with changes in the density of their hosts' population. The most significant in epizootic respect is the flea X. gerbilli caspica from which about 50% of plague agent cultures were isolated.

In the period from April to May and September to October of 1967--1973 in the Mujun-Kum a radioactive tracing of great gerbils was carried out. In all 225 tests were conducted. The greatest intensity of parasitic contacts between the animals was noted at their average quantity. Its further rise does not result in the increase of the parasitic relations. If the number of fleas is high the parasitic contacts level even at the relatively low number of great gerbils is usually high enough for a further passing of the plague microbe. If the number of both fleas and great gerbils is low the parasitic relations provide but not always an agent transmission.

The frequency of Q fever in the area of Dzhabmul varies from 1.0 [district of Kurdayi, 1968] to 18.1 [district of Talass, 1972] for 100,000 inhabitants. The lower incidence of Q fever in the rural population, compared to that of inhabitants of towns, is closely associated with the development of early immunity. Farm animals are the main source of infection. The persistent circulation of Rickettsia burneti among wild life is maintained by wild mammallans and ticks Ixodes.