Blood-sucking arthropods in the Anthropocene: climate change thermotolerance, and global disease risks

Warming and increased frequency of extreme weather events are altering vector thermal environments in ways that change survival, development, season length, geographic range, and vector competence - but responses, when known, appear to be species- and population-specific because of differing thermotolerance, available thermoregulatory mechanisms, plasticity, and possible genetic adaptations. Empirical work now shows both potential for rapid adaptation in some populations and vulnerabilities (e.g. heat effects on egg viability or symbionts) that could interact with warming to produce complex, non-linear outcomes on vector biology and their ability to transmit pathogens to humans and other animals. In this review, we focus on major disease vector arthropods, including ticks, kissing bugs, tsetse flies, sand flies, and mosquitoes, specifically reviewing the literature published over the past 5 years.