Biological transmission occurs when the infectious microbes reproduce within a vector such as insects (arthropods) and the microbes are being transmitted between hosts. Most insects transmit the infectious microbes by biting the host. Below is a list of common insects and the pathogen/disease they may carry.
| Common Name | Species | Pathogen | Disease(s) |
| Black fly | Simulium spp. | Onchocerca volvulus | Onchocerciasis |
| Flea | Xenopsylla cheopis | Rickettsia typhi | Murine typhus |
| Yersinia pestis | Plague | ||
| Kissing bug | Triatoma spp. | Trypanosoma cruzi | Chagas disease |
| Louse | Pediculus humanus humanus | Bartonella quintana | Trench fever |
| Borrelia recurrentis | Relapsing fever | ||
| Rickettsia prowazekii | Typhus | ||
| Mite | Leptotrombidium spp. | Orientia tsutsugamushi | Scrub typhus |
| Liponyssoides sanguineus | Rickettsia akari | Rickettsialpox | |
| Mosquito | Aedes spp., Haemagogus spp. | Yellow fever virus | Yellow fever |
| Anopheles spp. | Plasmodium falciparum | Malaria | |
| Culex pipiens | West Nile virus | West Nile disease | |
| Sand fly | Phlebotomus spp. | Leishmania spp. | Leishmaniasis |
| Tick | Ixodes spp. | Borrelia spp. | Lyme disease |
| Dermacentor spp. | Rickettsia rickettsii | Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever | |
| Tsetse fly | Glossina spp. | Trypanosoma brucei | African trypanosomiasis |
Source:
OpenStax Microbiology. Common Arthropod Vectors and Select Pathogens. Accessed November 15, 2019
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