This article discusses the impact climate change is having on insects and the diseases they carry. It is not good.
Rates have tripled in 15 years, and some scientists suspect climate change is partly to blame.
Diseases caused by mosquitoes, ticks and fleas have tripled in the United States within the last 15 years, according to an alarming new report.
The study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds that cases of vector-borne diseases—those spread by the parasites—jumped from 27,388 in 2004 to 96,075 in 2016.
The findings come at a time of growing concern about the potential influence of climate change on the spread of infectious disease. As temperatures and precipitation patterns change, research suggests that some disease-carrying vectors, like mosquitoes and ticks, may be able to spread into new territories, reproduce more easily, or become more aggressive at seeking out and biting human hosts.